


The Wanderer of Worlds

by CloudFry



Category: Tales of Berseria
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Canon, Fantasy, Friendship, Gen, Updated Every Monday & Friday
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-26
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-07-17 19:23:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 64
Words: 305,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16102181
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CloudFry/pseuds/CloudFry
Summary: A long-lost friend trying to get home to a place that's not on the map. A vengeful daemon bent on self-destruction, ignorant of her own humanity. Will Velvet Crowe find it in herself to seek redemption in the light? Or will she recede further into the darkness? No non-canon pairings.





	1. Prologue

**Prologue:**

Leonex Davidson was tired.

Granted, these days he was always tired, one way or the other. But today was especially tiring; it was just one of those days.

The sound of his boots landing on the concrete floor echoed throughout the vast monolithic walls surrounding him, the only proof of life in a desolate world. The man’s eyes could barely distinguish the features of the building he was exploring in the dark and gloomy atmosphere that permeated everything.

Even the transparent wall serving as a window to the outside was utterly unremarkable. Only the vaguest hint of light emitted from the dim dwarf star hanging high and burning cool in the foreign sky, sending meek, dull red rays through the glass and into the empty skyscraper the man was in. One of the many empty edifices demarcating the fall of an ancient civilization.

It was a quiet universe, on the edge of heat death.

Leo sighed, hefting the wooden lever-action rifle strapped onto his shoulder and pulling the coat on his back closer to himself as he continued wandering aimlessly onward through the silent building, killing time. That was all he ever did these days, it would seem.

Quietly, he made his way to the staircase at the corner of the building and began to climb, keeping his steps light and gentle out of habit. With each step he took, he regressed deeper and deeper into himself.

He hated worlds like these.

The ones with nothing to distract him from the demons hiding within his memories. The ones that did nothing to disguise the loneliness haunting him.

Slowly, mechanically, his legs continued to move, dragging his body endlessly forward. A quaint metaphor for his life.

The stairs ended, and his noisy breathing leveled out as his boots made contact with carpeting, brittle and colorless from the years. He made his way through the dark hallway, absently keeping his eyes scanning the various doorways on the off-chance that there was anything lurking in the shadows that could pose a threat to him.

But there was nothing. Only the quiet thumps of his own boots on carpet kept him company.

How long has he been wandering? Leo pondered detachedly as he walked. It was funny just how little time held meaning to a person who travelled worlds.

To a man just trying to go home.

Tick… Tick… Tick…

Leo blinked as the foreign sound grew louder as he approached, a sound that mimicked the steps of his boots.

There, in the corner of an obscure, darkened office, stood a simple, primitive clock. Nothing fancy. According to the display, it was currently around noon. And that was all the information it knew.

Leo stood there in the doorway, watching the clock as it continued to tick, deafeningly loud in the silent atmosphere. Still counting time for a world that no longer held any use for such a concept. Useless.

With a slight shake of his head, Leo turned away from the brief curiosity and moved on, the ticking fading away the farther he walked.

Eventually, the man made his way to his destination, grunting as he pushed a hard steel door open, fighting against ages worth of rust. With a huff, the man managed to squeeze his way out of the jammed portal, stepping out onto the roof of the building.

A desolate city sprawled out before him. High up in the sky, the single dying dwarf star slowly and quietly burned to death, one of the few remaining sources of heat in the universe. A thick forest of concrete titans jutted out haltingly from the dead ground, their foundations solid yet their occupants absent.

Leo let out an exhausted grunt as he settled himself down on the edge of the roof, his legs dangling carelessly over the edge, over the vast network of empty streets hundreds of feet below. He gazed around, his eyes detached and haunted.

Just one of those days.

One of those days where he could not forbid himself from reaching into himself and remembering the mistakes of the past. One of those days of keen longing, and deeply-rooted despair. Just another one.

He sat there quietly, a wanderer marooned away from everything he loved.

Ever so slowly, his eyes fell from the horizon to the deadly drop in front of him, a strange look on his face. His hand clenched.

He forced his thoughts away from the abyss, jerking his gaze up towards the stars above.

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

“Notice. Device charge complete. Notification code: 0203.”

The noises rang inside his own mind, but not outside. He grunted, standing up and away from the ledge. With a practiced thought, the man sent a mental message to the device embedded in his brain.

The device that allowed him to wander between worlds.

BEEP!

“Notice. Confirmation required. Notification code: 7021.”

Leo took one last look over the desolate horizon with a detached expression. The silence held firm. Not even a single gust of wind blew in the air. This world was dead.

There was no point in staying.

And with that thought in mind, Leo nodded his head, seemingly to himself.

BEEP!

“Notice. Initializing. Notification code: 7029.”

A sharp, acute hum filled his ears as the device in his head began the familiar routine of transporting the man to a different world. He had long ago lost track of how many times he’d had to listen to this same whining pitch growing louder and louder in his ears.

He let out a sigh as the whining peaked, his vision blanking out as the machine overrode his biological sensory processes in favor of easing the transition.

Just another step in an endless path.

A sudden blinding flash of light briefly illuminated the roof of the skyscraper in a brilliant cutting burst of color in a dull world. For a brief second, it was as if the sun had returned to full strength, announcing its presence to the empty towers of the broken city.

And then just like that, the flash vanished, returning the world to atrophy.

Just like that, the wanderer of worlds continued his ceaseless journey, foolishly searching for the place he called home.

Just one of those days.

 


	2. C00 - Arrival

**Chapter 0 – Arrival.**

A bright flash of color and then a slow return to darkness was all Leonex Davidson knew as the device worked, transporting him to a new, random world. One of the many countless worlds that formed the fabric of existence.

In the earlier days of his travels, he'd spend most of this time in limbo between worlds hoping beyond hope that when he opened his eyes, he'd see something that would confirm his return to his home world.

A jetliner in a blue sky. A familiar city in the distance. A memorable natural landmark. Anything.

Anything that would welcome him back home.

But now, as the darkness of his vision regressed and the whirling of the machine died down, Leo simply couldn't bring himself to hope anymore. He'd been disappointed too many times before to let himself do that anymore.

With a resigned sigh, Leo opened his eyes to discover a new world.

The first thing he saw was the color green.

He was surrounded by thin, tall trees with lush, bright-green leaves. A chilly summer wind blew through the forest he was in, making him shiver in delight. High up in the sky, a pleasant and welcoming sun beamed its brilliant rays through the leaves and onto the warm forest floor.

Birds chirped. Insects buzzed. High up in the sky, a hawk cried as it hunted. The rustling of leaves mixed with all the various sounds of the local fauna, combining to create a truly fantastic symphony of natural calm.

Despite himself, Leo found a beaming smile on his face.

He wasn't sure if this was Earth or not, but he'd be damned if he didn't appreciate a world that wasn't dark and gloomy.

With a quiet breath, the man gathered his bearings. As far as he could tell, he had arrived within a calm forest on a planet with remarkably Earth-like organisms. All of it held promise, yet he would do well not to let his guard down. He'd had too many close calls in the past that had all started out just as promising as this.

Noticing the lack of the familiar weight on his shoulder, Leo glanced around the forest floor for his rifle. A glint of metal caught his eye. There, lying happily and loyally on a bed of fallen leaves, was his homemade lever-action firearm.

With a sigh of relief, the man shuffled over and bent down to collect his dropped rifle.

SNAP.

Leo froze to the sound of a snapping twig that had come from somewhere extremely close by. Alarmed, his eyes shot up in the direction of the sound. And then his jaw dropped.

What could only be described as a monster stood there in the shadows of the forest, glaring hatefully at the man. A bipedal wolf-monster that was standing tall and intimidatingly, its breaths heavy and baleful. Sharp claws stained with blood extended from its massive fingers. Razor-sharp fangs drew themselves outwards from its stiff, growling muzzle. Cold, blood-red eyes pierced Leo's.

_Well. I guess that rules Earth out._  The man remarked dryly in his head.

Abruptly, the monster threw open its jaws and emitted a terrifying howl that made Leo's blood run cold. Instantly, adrenaline spiked in his body as he prepared to fight for his life.

With another vicious howl, the monster charged.

"SHIT!" Leo swore as he dove forward, his hands outstretched and reaching for his firearm.

With a grunt, the man hit the dirt with his shoulder, rolling over his rifle while simultaneously getting his dominant hand on the receiver. He felt a terrifying gust of wind as the monster barreled by inches away from his body, the sharp claws horribly close to rending his flesh apart.

"Oh, to hell with this!" With a yelp, Leo leapt to his feet with his rifle clutched hard in his right hand and began to run. Behind him, the monster skidded to a stop in the grass, whirling around with a predatorial snarl as its prey scrambled in a vain attempt to flee.

As the monster began its chase behind him, Leo abruptly skidded to a halt, whirling around and clicking the safety off on his rifle. He didn't even bother using the iron sights; he simply pointed his rifle directly at the fast-approaching monster and hoped for the best.

His right index finger slid into the trigger guard and squeezed.

CRACK!

The alien feedback of the discharged weapon echoed unnaturally throughout the surrounding forest and dissipated with a muffle. A flock of birds took flight in a panic as the foreign noise cut sharply through the calm of the forest.

Leo's heart pounded as he watched the bullet connect directly with the monster in the head, causing it to stumble and howl in pain, clutching the inflicted wound. With a roar, the thing tore the bullet out of his skull and tossed it aside to be forgotten. Its gaze was murderous.

_That… that did next to nothing!_ Leo gaped.  _What the-?_

Another vicious howl tore through Leo's thoughts as the monster once again charged towards him, completely unaffected by the shallow wound the round had inflicted. Leo watched, frozen in terror and shock as the red-eyed monster leapt towards him, claws splayed and mouth salivating.

He was going to die.

… _No!_

With a massive effort, the man lunged out of the way, the monster sailing over him once again as he dove to the side, grunting as he crashed onto the dirt, his rifle rattling with the impact. Swearing, the man found the ground with his feet and kicked, pushing himself forward and into the shadows of the forest in a desperate bid for survival.

The terrifying howls of the monster chasing after him raised the hairs on Leo's neck as he ducked and weaved between the tree trunks. He knew there was little to no hope of him losing the monster. And there was nothing he could do about it.

Gods, this world was a living nightmare.

He slung his rifle over his shoulder, reluctantly dismissing his favored weapon as useless and focused on simply running as fast as he could, trying his damndest not to trip of the various roots jutting out from the forest floor.

Patches of light flew briefly over him as he ran deeper and deeper into the forest with no destination at all in mind. All he could think of was making enough turns to try to confuse the beast.

Desperately, he sent a thought to the device in his head, pleading whatever greater powers were up there that this world had a high charging rate.

_Please, please,_ please  _let there be a high radiation amount…!_

A crystal-clear augmented reality window abruptly materialized in his vision as the device in his head pumped the artificial image overlaying his biological vision. The information contained within showed him the progress the device had made towards gathering enough radiation for another world jump.

0.02%.

_Well,_ Leo thought sardonically as he mentally dismissed the notification from his vision,  _if there are greater powers out there, they're surely having a good fucking laugh at me now!_

Cursing his fate and pretty much everything else, the man sprinted out of the shadows and into a clearing, gasping for breath as his legs failed him. He glanced wildly around him as the sweat dripped off his chin, having no idea where the beast was in relation to him.

A growl stopped his heart as he whipped around, watching as the monster trod out from the darkness in front of him, slowly approaching its winded prey. He could see a single tendril of saliva lazily hanging from the monster's fangs.

He was dead meat.

In pure animal instinct, Leo reached around and pulled his rifle off his shoulder and raised it, aiming directly at the approaching beast.

And then he lowered it, defeated.

Useless.

"Damn." He cursed. "To think it'll end like this." He muttered.

Trapped in some obscure corner of the worlds, doomed to die alone.

With a huff, he tossed the useless rifle away from himself, splaying his empty hands out and freely offering himself to the monster. "Well, come on then!" He roared angrily. "This has been a long time coming, so let's just get it over with!"

The steps of the monster grew louder as it approached, its low savage growling grating on Leo's ears. The man stilled as the monster drew close.

"I'm… sorry." Leo breathed quietly, clenching his hands. "I can't go home to tell you myself… So, for what it's worth…" He chuckled dryly.

"…Sorry. For everything." He whispered to himself. Utterly alone.

With that, the lonely Wanderer of Worlds closed his eyes and readied himself for the worst.

"Seres."

And naturally, the worst didn't happen.

SMASH!

Leo's eyes tore open as the monster howled in agony. He recoiled in shock as he registered the massive spike of pure ice that had somehow run the damn monster straight through.

"What the  _hell_?!" He yelled in alarm as the monster roared in agony, clutching the spike bulging out of its chest.

SMASH!

Leo shouted again on instinct as another ice spike materialized out of thin air and drove itself seemingly by itself straight through the monster's skull, killing it instantly. The body slumped unceremoniously onto the ground, returning the forest to silence once more. Blood drizzled out of the wounds, staining the floor below.

The chirping of birds, the buzzing of insects, and the rustling of the leaves continued all around the man as he tried his damndest to internalize what the hell had just happened, staring in astonishment at the monster lying dead at his feet.

"Who are you?" The question was guarded, spoken by a baritone voice of a warrior.

Leo blinked as he whirled around, just now recognizing the presence of a human being behind him. A man with piercing blue eyes and a folded right arm in a cast, holding a sheathed sword that Leo did not doubt he could use.

He shook himself forcibly out of his shock. "Uh," He cleared his throat, "The name's Leo. Leonex Davidson." He glanced furtively over his shoulder at the definitely dead monster, the vicious-looking spikes of ice embedded in its chest slowly melting in the sun. "…Were you the one who saved me?" He asked with wide eyes.

"I was." The man inclined his head. "Leo." He tasted the name. "What is your business in Aball?" He asked.

The rustling of the leaves in the wind filled the silence that followed.

With practiced ease, Leo filed the information away and readied the usual excuses. "…I'm just passing through. It's what I do." He explained lightly.

The man raised an eyebrow, openly skeptical of such a loose answer. "In such troubled times, some would call that the errand of a fool, especially with the daemon menace on the rise." He gestured pointedly to the body of the monster that had nearly killed him.

Leo shrugged. "I get that a lot." He remarked wryly.

"Hmph." The stranger's eyes were firm. "May I ask where you are from?" He asked.

Finding the man's unerring stoicism unnerving, Leo tried his best to make his excuses. "I…" he looked away. "I would prefer not to talk about that." He stated haltingly.

"Why?" The man's voice was hard.

Leo wouldn't say. Revealing secrets just wasn't something Leonex Davidson did.

"I'm… afraid that's a secret, sir." He mumbled. Seeking to change the subject before the suspicious man pressed him any further, Leo quickly bent down and rubbed his sore legs. "…I don't mean to impose, but I don't suppose you could help me find my way to Aball? I'm utterly lost…" He trailed off hopefully.

Clearly unimpressed by the change of subject, the stranger considered Leo for a while in silence, his eyes roaming over his appearance.

All of a sudden, he turned and looked to a spot in the air next to him, watching the point of space intently. Leo blinked as the man murmured to himself as if he had an invisible friend.

"…If you say so." The man muttered before turning his head back to address a confused Leo.

His face softened.

"Aball is about an hour's trek through the Morgana woods, towards the east." He indicated to a cardinal direction. "I shall accompany you to the front gates. It's not safe to be out here alone in the wilderness these days. More and more daemons have been threatening the town lately. I don't imagine we'll have much trouble, but it never hurts to be safe." He gave the stranger a look. "How long do you expect to stay in town?" He inquired.

Leo nodded at the sensible question, straightening his back as he answered. "Just enough time to get my bearings before I can set off again." He shrugged. "You don't have to worry about me, I promise. I won't cause trouble." He affirmed.

"See to it that you do." The man ordered firmly. He blinked, remembering himself. "Oh, and the name's Arthur." He inclined his head respectfully. "If you have any questions for me, feel free to let me know."

Leo smiled warmly in response, glad to finally have gotten through that barrier of suspicion. "Much appreciated, Arthur." He chuckled self-depreciatingly. "And uh, thanks for saving my life, too."

Arthur's face was remarkably warmer. "Of course. It's what I do, after all."

Leo blinked. "What you do?"

"I'm an exorcist." Arthur explained, the bauble on his sheathed sword tinkling gently. "I help protect the village from daemons."

Filing all the information into his head, Leo nodded. "Nonetheless, thank you. Really."

Arthur turned his gaze up towards the sky at the sun. "…We should get going. There's not much time left in the day."

"Alright." Leo nodded, abruptly remembering his rifle laying in the sunlight.

He trotted over and picked it up, gingerly wiping the barrel free of dirt. The man slipped his fingers through the lever handle and pushed, extending the lever downwards and ejecting the spent cartridge, which plonked down happily on the forest floor with a clink. Automatically, Leo's hands pulled the lever back into place with a concise metallic snap, chambering a fresh round.

"What's that?" Arthur's voice was curious.

"It's just an improvised weapon that I made." Leo explained, lightly dismissing the technology in his hands. "It's a hobby."

"Hm." Arthur hummed, his gaze ever so curious as he took in the enigma of a traveler he had discovered.

Leo slung the rifle over his shoulder and gestured with his thumb. "Well then, shall we?" He prompted.

"Yes." Arthur nodded, stepping forward. "This way." He indicated with his hand.

Leo nodded and followed the man through the forest the sun began its descent high overhead.

And it was in this fashion that Leonex Davison arrived in the village of Aball, located on the Eastgand continent of the world of Desolation.

Just another stop in a never-ending journey back home.


	3. C01 - Clarity

**Chapter 1 – Clarity.**

Velvet Crowe was not amused.

Standing just outside the doorway of her brother's room with crossed arms, tapping her right index finger on her left bicep and glaring daggers at the occupants inside, the young woman was an image of fury; a dramatic contrast to her usual cheerful self.

On a typical day, Velvet Crowe's personality had the tendency to warm those around her with her light-hearted charm alongside her stout determination inherited from her brother-in-law Arthur. Her willingness to go out of her way to help village members with this and that had earned her quite the positive reputation among the townsfolk.

However, when it came to her younger brother Laphicet Crowe, the whole village of Aball knew to stay the hell out of Velvet's path, lest one incur her nearly obsessive sisterly wrath.

Everyone except Leonex Davidson, of course.

No, the newest Crowe family friend had the gall- _the GALL_ -to keep her sickly brother awake when he  _should be sleeping_. The sun was down, dinner had been eaten, and  _he was still awake_. Not only that, but he was  _wide_  awake.

"No way! A ship could never be built out of metal!" Laphicet's shout of disbelief echoed through the house.

A determined Leo pressed his point. "Absolutely! The laws of physics that are the foundation of the concept of buoyancy dictate that any material, no matter how heavy, given the right proportion of surface area and volume, can float!"

"There's just no way! Take a tree log and take a cannon. Both circular objects of approximately the same dimensions. Drop them into the ocean and see which one floats. The density of the latter is just too dense to float compared to the former!"

"No, the only thing too dense to float is you, Laphi!"

"Well, actually Leo, I'll have you know that the human body can float just fine due to its light size and weight, relative to the water."

"Nah, I'm sure if you jumped into the ocean, you'd just sink straight down into the reefs 'cuz of that dense little head of yours."

"Nu-uh!"

"Uh-huh!"

"Nu-uh!"

"Uh-huh!"

Velvet's eye twitched.

No. This would not do. This would not do  _at all_.

"Nu-uh!"

"Uh-huh!"

" _What. Are. You. Doing. Up?"_

The two bickering parties froze as if someone had just poured a bucket of ice-cold water down their backs, keenly aware of the fact that they had suddenly been torn from their childish argument into a dreadful life-or-death situation.

"O-oh, h-hi there, Velvet! What's up?" Laphicet stuttered nervously, suddenly distinctly aware of the time of day judging by the darkness outside the window.

"'What's up' yourself,  _mister_.  _You_  should be in bed." Velvet growled. "And  _you,_ " Velvet turned her wrath onto Leo, who flinched, "should NOT be bothering my sick brother this late."

"C'mon Velvet! It was a nuanced nautical discussion on the real-world applications of conceptual materials!" Leo whined a weak defense.

"You've been having 'nuanced nautical discussions' for half the day now!" Velvet huffed sharply through her nose. "You've been here since lunch! I think Laphi will be perfectly happy mulling over everything you've talked about today.  _Unconscious_." The sister made a sidelong glare at her brother, who shivered in fear.

Leo, for his part, bravely attempted to defend himself. "But Velvet! The noble pursuit of scientific advancement waits for no-"

"OUT." Velvet narrowed her eyes in anger, pointing a single finger towards the door.

Silence flooded the room with that ultimatum.

Until Leo not-so-quietly whispered to the younger Crowe in an obnoxiously loud drawl,  _"…Your sister's a real_ daemon _when it comes to you, you know that?"_  This elicited a fit of poorly-restrained snickers.

" _Totally!"_  Laphicet stage-whispered back between giggles, following Leo's lead. The two proceeded to burst into joint sniggers at the expense of the third.

Leo didn't think it was possible that Velvet could look even MORE agitated. He was wrong.

"OW! OW, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, ow, OW! Velvet!" Leo cried in agony as the properly pissed-off older sister promptly twisted the visitor's arm around his back and began marching him resolutely to the door.

"Bed. Now." The aptly labeled she-daemon glared at her brother over her shoulder on her way out.

Gulping audibly, a thoroughly cowed Laphicet hid under his sheets as if his life depended on it.

* * *

With a severely bruised ego, Leo hissed as he nursed the pain in his arm, watching as the older Crowe went back inside her brother's room having thrown out the trash, gently and softly wishing Laphicet goodnight having given him a quick but stern talking to.

Having blown out the candles and tucked Laphicet in (who, Leo knew for a fact, would not be sleeping much tonight after their conversation), Velvet eased herself out of the room, softly shutting the door behind her. She then turned an accusatory stare onto Leo.

"Sorry Velvet…" Leo scratched his head sheepishly. "We just lost track of time, that's all. Don't be too hard on him, it was my fault for keeping him up, like you said."

The young woman let out a quiet sigh and looked off to the side. "No, Leo, it's alright." Her eyes were soft. "Despite how much trouble you make around here, you are one of the best things that Laphi could possibly have right now." Her expression fell. "It's been getting harder and harder to get that kid to smile like that. His friends in town rarely come over, and even when they do they can't possibly keep up with his smart mind." Her face shined with a sad pride. "I know I couldn't."

She turned her amber eyes to meet Leo's brown. "You'll be coming over again tomorrow, right?"

Leo gave Velvet a sober nod. It was a damn shame that such an intelligent, energetic boy like Laphi could be cursed with such an existence. Confined to bed almost all day and night, with no cure in sight.

"Of course. I have the same problem myself. Very few people nowadays share the same interests as I. That kid is one in a damn million." Leo found himself telling her. "Not that you need me telling you that."

Velvet sighed again. "That's right…" She caught herself spacing out and shook herself out of her thoughts. "Alright you. Get out of here. You've stayed here more than long enough." She mock swatted her hand towards the front door of the house, turning around and walking to her room next door.

"Goodnight Velvet."

Velvet turned and looked back at him with a soft smile. "Goodnight Leo." With that, she shut the door to her room, trusting the family friend to leave on his own.

Leo gave a rather fond sigh as he took the chance to glance slowly around the darkened Crowe residence.

The aroma of the quiche they had eaten for dinner still lingered in the air. The remaining embers in the long-dead stove were barely noticeable. The creaking caused by Laphi tossing and turning around in his bed (no doubt baffled by the concept of a metal ship) induced a soft smile on Leo's face.

This was would have been his own life. A soft, quiet, and tame family homestead. No surprises, nothing out of the ordinary. A simple existence with loved ones. His fists curled for a second. And then fell limp.

With sharp shake of the head, Leo broke out of his stupor and let himself out of the house, welcoming the sharp contrast between the cozy and warm house atmosphere and the sharp and cold summer breeze on his face.

Nighttime had fully established its dominion over the sky. Crickets sang in abundance in the trees surrounding the house. An owl gave its musical accompaniment. The brilliant blue-tinged shine of the complete full moon glistened through the overhead leaves.

He sighed.

Two weeks.

It had been two weeks since he had arrived in this new world, and he had already found himself growing almost alarmingly fond of it.

Well, most of it.

His thoughts turned to the monster that nearly killed him two weeks ago with a grimace.

_The daemons though… How could there exist something so purely evil?_

Leo suddenly caught sight of someone standing vigil over the two graves in the vicinity of the Crowe residence. He instantly recognized the single-free-armed figure of Artorius Collbrande standing underneath the moon. The two made eye contact. The older man inclined his head wordlessly in simple acknowledgment of the man's presence. Leo gave a light wave back, and promptly set off on the path back to town, not wanting to intrude on the man's privacy any longer.

It was honestly a bit of a miracle that Arthur had allowed an utter stranger like him near his surrogate children in the first place, in retrospect. The man had his suspicions, but it wasn't as if they weren't unjustified.

Here Leo was, a man who refused to say where he had even come from, with no money in his pockets, a foreign weapon on his back, and a complete lack of direction in the head.

Nonetheless, Leo had somehow ended up endearing himself to the little Laphicet Crowe, Arthur's brother-in-law; a little box of intelligence and enthusiasm who Leo absolutely adored.

In a way, the kid reminded him of himself, way back when was young.

Shaking his head, Leo abruptly noticed that his autopilot walking had brought him to the main body of the village.

"Leo!" The call rang out through the night air.

Turning towards the source of his name, Leo turned and grinned, seeing a tall man with a familiar grin on his face jogging towards him. "'Evening, Drake!" Leo gave a wave. "You done for the day?"

Drake slowed down and arrived in front of Leo. "Yeep, all set!" He pointed a thumb over his shoulder. "It really shouldn't've taken us this long, but the rappigs have really been giving everyone a run for their money lately! Mating season and all that." He clapped a friendly hand on Leo's shoulder, causing Leo to grunt a bit in protest. "You know, Leo. You really should come and help us sometime! You'd make some good money towards that next ship passage you've been saving up for."

Leo shuddered and gingerly slipped his shoulder away from the man's calloused hand. "No way in hell am I EVER going within 50 steps of that pig pen again." He refuted soundly. "Last time I went there, I was ACUTALLY running for my money." Leo glared into the darkness behind Drake despite not actually being able to see the pen in question through the night.

With a roaring belly laugh, Drake slapped Leo again on the back, causing him to cough roughly in discomfort. "You need to learn how to treat a lady right son! Maybe kiss the sow next time eh?" The man suggested with a wriggle of his eyebrows. "Perhaps you can woo the pig, convince it not to chase you all over Aball next time!" Roaring with renewed laughter, Drake draped an arm over a grouchy Leo.

"Yeah, yeah real funny." He muttered sourly, swaying away from the added weight.

"Heh. Come on. Headed home?" Drake prompted.

"Yeah. Let's go man." Leo affirmed, before once again throwing off Drake's arm from his shoulders. "And do you mind not doing that? You smell."

* * *

"Hell of a moon tonight, eh?" Drake noted.

Leo glanced up at the complete bright white orb in the sky.

"Yeah." Leo quietly agreed.

As the two men strolled through the darkened village, the sounds of a community falling asleep enveloped them. It was times like these when he really appreciated the lack of technology in these people's lives. Intermittent signs of life could be heard here and there; a front door shutting, a child laughing, a dog barking. Life here really was peaceful.

"…You know, this town is really something." Leo remarked softly.

"Don't have such simple lifestyles back home, eh?" Drake prompted, eyeing his companion.

"Something like that." Leo reluctantly let out.

Seeing that the man would offer no further information, Drake with now practiced ease shrugged, putting the enigma that was his friend aside. Leo silently grimaced. Secrets always followed in his wake.

It was just in his nature to keep to himself.

"Can't wait for the wife's cooking." Drake lifted his bulky arms in a massive stretch, groaning. "Argh, every day gets a just a little bit harder."

"Why's that?" Leo asked.

"Daemons." The response was curt.

There was that word again, the apparent root of all evil. "They aren't doing more damage to the wall, are they?"

"'Fraid so," the villager replied, spitting on the ground. "I feel like every night the bastards grow more and more in number." Drake growled, glaring at the ground as they walked. "Keeping my family fed, guidin' my two daughters to adulthood, maintaining my services to the town... Why do I also have to deal with those infernal unkillable daemons!?"

"Beats me. I'd say that job should in theory be up to the Midgand Empire." Leo pointed out.

"BAH." Drake spat once more. "If anything, the real daemons are those buggering cowards in the capital. They can't do jack about anything. Couldn't even wipe their own rears properly."

Leo had nothing to say to that. He had spent enough time in this world to know that Drake's words spoke of the true reality of the ineffectual political situation of Midgand.

After a few more minutes of walking in contemplative silence, the inn of Aball, the town's only traveler destination, came into sight. The two men crossed the main village square towards the inn.

"So, who's staying over tonight?" Leo prompted.

"Eh, not too many, as usual. A few hunters, who'll be looking for prickleboars. They aren't too in season right now, but people are desperate."

Leo nodded. "Yeah. I haven't been able to hunt too many recently either. I hope they get enough for their families."

Drake gave a nod in response, stepping up the few steps up to the entrance to the inn. "Say, you think you could bag us something next time you head out? The wife has been craving some more meat, but it's just so damn expensive these days." He opened the door, beckoning Leo in.

"Of course, Drake. Anything. I promised you I'd do whatever I could to pay for my stay here." Leo stepped into the warm interior of the establishment, shrugging off his coat and bunching it under his arm.

As he trotted in, he was greeted with the familiar constant ticking of the grandfather clock situated directly across from the entrance to the lobby.

"I'd say you've already paid off well over a month's stay just for fixing that blasted old' clock of ours." Drake grinned, gesturing to the machine ticking in the corner. He shrugged. "But I'll not complain if you're baggin' me some free meat!" Chuckling again, the cheery innkeeper waved Leo off as he trudged off to the owner's portion of the building.

Leo headed the opposite direction over to the guest rooms. Distantly he heard Drake's trademark roar as he greeted his two daughters and wife on the other side of the building.

The inn at Aball was very rarely at complete occupancy, so the innkeeper Drake had no real reason not to take pity on the penniless (or galdless, according to the local currency) traveler that Arthur had fished up out of nowhere two weeks ago. Still, Leo had felt bad taking up the space for free, so he had asked if there was anything he could possibly do.

The grandfather clock was the solution to the problem.

He'd learned that it was very rare to have a device such as that in a frontier town like Aball. Goods like those were absolute luxuries here. That particular clock had been a memento from Drake's late father and had always tended to fail after a few months or so. The price to fix such a thing so far away from a major city would have been astronomical. Leo, always a proficient engineer, had been happy to oblige.

It would run for a few more months at the very least, he reckoned.

Pulling out a set of keys from one of his inside jacket pockets and unlocking his room, Leo stepped into the space that he now called his home, locking the door behind him with a sigh. It was a small rectangular room, consisting of nothing more than a bed and a desk, but travelling between dimensions tended to relieve a man of any high standards of life. He'd take what he could get.

Settling down on the creaking wooden chair in front of the desk with a groan, Leo bent down and reached under his bed, pulling out his rifle and setting it down on the table with a heavy thunk.

Over the many years away from his home, Leo had come to understand the importance of maintaining his weapon. Over even more years away from his home, such maintenance had become his grounding therapy.

Running his eyes along the length of the weapon, Leo smiled nostalgically. Rebuilt dozens of times over the years, this particular model of a lever-action rifle had almost become an extension of himself. It had saved his life more times than he could count. Despite its apparent ineffective nature in his current setting against daemons, he would never let go of it. Besides, it was still efficient as ever at hunting local wildlife.

With practiced ease, the man began field stripping the weapon.

"Now… Let's see why you've been jamming on me…" Leo muttered under his breath.

Part after part came out of the gun and was placed neatly in an organized and methodical manner on top of the table. As he did so, his mind began to disconnect from the task, instead reflecting once more on the newest life he was living.

Two weeks.

Funny how time passes so slowly the first month after one arrives in a new universe. It was almost as if he was being born once again, slowing down the perception of time observed by the fickle human brain.

Thinking on the subject, Leo unconsciously brushed his hands lightly over the surgical scars on the right side of his head, hidden by his hair.

Where the device was buried inside his brain.

The source of all his hopes, dreams, nightmares, and failures.

"Ouch!" He hissed, sucking on his finger. He had managed to prick himself on one of the many sharp edges of his weapon. Clumsy idiot.

Forcing himself to focus before he ended up losing a stray spring and was forced to fabricate a completely new one with whatever materials available (a process he was very capable of, but one that he was not particularly interested in doing at the moment), Leo narrowed his eyes and glared at the metallic part that had assaulted him. It looked distinctly bent out of shape.

_Ah. This piece._

Culprit found, Leo gingerly reached into the inside of his coat, delicately threading his hands through the opening of his inside coat pocket and pulling out a distinctly worn leather notebook.

Adjusting his glasses, Leo paged delicately through the almost ridiculously full pages of the weathered notebook, at the same time measuring the part he had found with a makeshift wooden ruler with the familiar imperial and metric systems carved roughly yet accurately onto the surface.

Stopping at a particular page, Leo compared the imperfections of the part in his hands with the blueprints present in his notebook. Observations and possible causes mentally noted, Leo gingerly let his precious notebook lie on the table with the blueprint page open and began working on the part with an improvised file.

Scrch, scrch.

As the repetitive scratching of the file on metal resounded off the wooden walls around him, Leo's thoughts began to stray idly back towards the device.

Absently, the man sent a mental message to the machine in his head. The device responded immediately by triggering the wires in his optical nerves to activate, displaying a familiar artificial image of a notification window containing a progress bar in his vision.

01.57%.

Leo sighed. With a slight shake of his head, the man dismissed the window from his vision.

This world had the lowest charging rate he'd  _ever_ seen. And he'd been travelling for a  _long_ time.

Ambient radiation levels were extremely low. Normally it took the man at most a single month before his device had absorbed enough radiation to send him to a different world. But here in the world called Desolation…

_It'll be years before the device fully recharges enough for another jump._ He realized morosely. Leo shook his head.  _Damnit. I guess my luck finally ran out._ He sighed, his shoulder slumping defeatedly.

_Well, there's nothing to it, I suppose._

_Just more time to kill._

Blowing sharply on the weapon part to clear the filed metal shreds away, Leo let his mind wander away from the length of his sentence and instead considered the actual cell he was trapped in. His thoughts turned to the people he had come to know. The townsfolk of Aball.

_This town is great._ He reflected warmly.

_It's calm, peaceful, and everything I could ever want. I could be safe here for the years I would need to wait for the device to charge._

A small, warm smile slowly crept onto his face.

He could vividly imagine the warm lifestyle that would await him. He would help that kid Laphicet Crowe grow up under the loving care of his sister. He would stay and help Drake in the inn, helping the man grab some more prickleboar meat for his wife on a daily basis. Hell, maybe he would even get Velvet to tolerate him.

He would make this place a temporary home. A place to belong.

_No._

Leo stopped filing abruptly. His eyes were hard and forceful as he shook his head.

_That wouldn't be reasonable._

The inn room was silent as the man shut his eyes forcefully, shoving the rebellious thoughts from his head. After the brief pause, the sound of the file resumed.

Scrch, scrch.

_I have my own things to worry about._ He reminded himself firmly. _I can't forget about…_

A rebellious hand abandoned his current task and was flipping the pages of the journal before Leo had time to stop it.

A picture of his wife. A life. A home.

The hand was belatedly caught, and a random page was swiftly turned to, covering the woman's face.

He closed his eyes.

Again, the hand itched to turn the page, to let the man stare at that gorgeous face, that sketch that took up so much precious room in his small pocketbook. To long for and bemoan a hopeless future.

Leo sighed in frustration.

Forcing himself to focus, the man went back to work, purposefully preventing his brain from thinking of any subject other than gunmetal for the next half hour.

That night, Leo's dreams were dyed a scarlet red hue.


	4. C02 - Velvet

**Chapter 2 – Velvet.**

Leaves crackled as a foreign human stomped through the sea of dry leaves that made up the floor of the Tranquil Forest. Leo huffed as he stopped to take a breath, glancing up at the sky. The full moon from last night still shined happily in the sky. There was still no hint of the morning light soon to come. He reckoned that it was around an hour until sunrise.

He hadn't been able to sleep. It was hard to sleep when his stupid brain kept giving him horrific blood-red dreams of screaming and death.

Hence, the ridiculous early-morning hunt. Leo gave out a self-deprecating scoff and adjusted the strap of his rifle on his shoulder, setting off once more. It would be a flat-out miracle if he managed to see anything, much less shoot it, in the darkness. But he supposed he just needed the air to clear his head.

Being alone was always his first place to go when he needed to think.

It was always the safest option.

PLONK!

"Son of a biscuit-!" Leo swore as he tried in vain to save his sock from getting wet as his boot suddenly plunged into a surprise body of water instead of solid ground. Looks like he had just found Eastgand's Lake Perniya. With his left boot.

Leo groaned in dismay as he held up his boot in the dim morning light, utterly soaked. He growled under his breath. "Screw this lake, screw this boot, screw this hunt, and I suppose while I'm at it, screw this whole world!" He punctuated his statements with angry stomps in a vain attempt to get the congealed mud off his shoe.

"That doesn't exactly sound like a nuanced nautical discussion."

Leo jumped and whirled around to see none other than Velvet Crowe observing the scene with amusement with a hand on her hip, dressed in hunting clothes and carrying a weapon strapped onto her right forearm.

Leo found his voice. "Young lady, you obviously haven't met a sailor before if you think that. Also," he raised an eyebrow, "what the hell are you doing out here this early?"

Velvet leaned forward with wide eyes. "I could ask you the same."

"Couldn't sleep. You?"

"Same here!" Velvet laughed and tilted her head curiously. "Huh! What a coincidence!"

Leo laughed. "I guess we both have a penchant for going on stupid hunts in the morning."

Velvet gave a smile. "I guess so. It's calming, if anything. Walking alone in the forest at night. They don't call this place the Tranquil Woods for nothing." She glanced wryly down at Leo's drenched boot. "Well, generally speaking that is."

Leo grunted. "It  _was_  calming."

Velvet laughed. "Well, if you're done scaring off all the wildlife around Aball by conducting experiments to see if your boot can float, the local fauna should be waking up around now."

Leo glanced up. The sky was indeed getting brighter, the darkness of night giving way to the deep blue of early morning.

"Alright. You want to hunt together?" He offered. "Might as well, we're already here."

Velvet seemed up for it. "Sure! Although, I don't normally hunt with someone else, so I'm sorry in advance if I get in your way."

Leo shrugged. "Wasn't really planning on bagging much to begin with. Just enough to satisfy the almighty innkeeper's wife."

Velvet gave a smile. "Drake's wife does love her meat." She agreed. "The man's asked me to hunt for his wife quite a few times too."

Leo grinned. "That woman's downright ravenous." He commented.

The two shared a light laugh.

They began to walk along the length of the lake in companionable silence through the dim morning light. The early-rising birds were just starting to begin their songs while the fish in the lake occasionally made their presence known by leaping out of the water with soft splashes.

Leo noticed out of the corner of his eye Velvet's weapon on her arm glinting in the morning light. "Say, Velvet, what kind of weapon is that? I've never seen a model like that before."

"Oh, this? This is a gauntlet blade." Velvet sliced her arm out in a practiced manner while simultaneously clenching her fist. A blade three times the length of the weapon slid out with lightning speed. She did a similar movement and the blade re-sheathed itself.

Leo's eyes shined. "That thing's amazing!" He exclaimed. "The blade must be segmented and have joints that quickly lock up when the blade exits the sheath and be able to be quickly unlock themselves when it closes."

"Leo? You're drooling."

"That's crazy!" Leo remarked with wide eyes. "You think I could get one?"

Velvet shook her head. "Not from around here, at least. Arthur bought it for me from a travelling merchant a few years ago. I don't know where you'd be able to get one in Eastgand."

Leo looked thoughtful. "That's right. You're Arthur's pupil huh?"

Velvet nodded. "Yep! I'm training hard as I can. I hope to become an exorcist just like him someday!"

Leo summarized, "Exorcists. People who have special abilities that make them capable of killing daemons, right? Useful." He commented.

Velvet suddenly looked rather sad. "Yeah… Especially when it comes to protecting your own family…"

Her fist curled against her chest.

Leo kept his mouth shut. He'd been with the Crowes long enough to know about their tragic pasts. The two lovingly cared-for gravestones in front of the house spoke plenty enough about that already.

He changed the subject. "So why are you hunting? Saving up for anything in particular?"

Velvet gave herself a mental shake and responded, "No, nothing like that. I'm saving up money for some medicine for Laphi. It's really expensive stuff." She sighed, her brows furrowing. "No matter what I buy, and how much of it I give him, his fevers just keep on coming back like clockwork."

Her expression turned determined. "…But I will find something that will cure my brother. I have to!"

Leo looked on soberly. "You want help with that? I'm sure I can grab you some extra meat every now and then…"

Velvet shook her head. "It wouldn't be right." She refused. "Laphi would never let me take your money." She blinked. "And besides! It's for your travels, right?"

Leo nodded. "Yeah…" He trailed off uncomfortably.

Velvet nodded. "Well, then that settles it!" She poked a finger at his chest. "Since  _you_ are so buddy-buddy with my little brother, your job is to keep on saving money for yourself."

"Huh?"

"I want you to keep exploring the world. For Laphi." Velvet demanded. "And then I want you to come back and tell him all about it!" She was infectiously excited about the idea. "That way, maybe we can beat this sickness together with sheer spirit!"

Leo gave a sad smile. Velvet's optimism was stunning sometimes to a rather jaded soul like him.

In a pleasant sort of way.

"Oh, if I have to…" He mock groaned.

Velvet gave him a playful fist to the shoulder. "Idiot." She rolled her eyes.

"Hey! I'm kidding! Ow…" He rubbed his shoulder in pain.

Velvet abruptly noticed the thing hanging off the man's shoulder by a strap. "…Say, Leo, what do  _you_  use as a weapon?"

Leo followed her gaze and pulled his rifle off his back and showed it to her. "I use this. It's a little personal experiment that I came up with myself." He imitated it firing. "My own personal improvised handheld cannon!"

Velvet stared in disbelief. "That's incredible! How did you get a cannon to be so light?!"

Leo hedged. "Eh, I'm just creative."

She shook her head in wonder. "…Well, I suppose someone who had nimble enough fingers to fix Drake's old grandfather clock must have quite the skills. Will it kill a prickleboar?"

Leo grinned, returning the rifle back onto his shoulder. "If I can hit it. And I've had quite a bit of target practice during my travels."

Velvet cocked her head. "Oh? And where have you been?" She asked curiously.

Before Leo could answer with some vague response, the young woman quickly held up a hand and knelt down to the forest floor, pointing at a pair of tracks.

"Prickleboars. Close." She mouthed. She held up two fingers.

Leo nodded and got his rifle in hand, clicking the safety off. He gestured, indicating for Velvet to lead.

The two began their silent voyage following the prickleboars' tracks in the dirt.

It wasn't long before they came across two fat-looking prickleboar drinking from the lakeshore a little way away from the tree line they were in. Leo and Velvet exchanged glances.

Leo pointed at himself and then at the farther boar. Velvet nodded, and turned to her own target, the closer boar. The young hunter moved with impressive familiarity and silence, weaving quietly through the shrubbery towards her prey.

Meanwhile, Leo crouched down behind the tree line and raised his rifle, settling the barrel on a level tree branch. He gingerly adjusted the sights and lined up a shot picture of the farther prickleboar, careful to judge the lines of sight to make sure Velvet wouldn't be caught in the crossfire if the prickleboar ran away.

And then he waited.

Still as he could be, his finger hovering over the trigger guard, his left eye firmly pressed, and his breathing as steady as he could manage.

The first prickleboar never stood a chance as Velvet suddenly pounced unnoticed from the tree line and extended her gauntlet blade directly between the ribs of the animal. The dying squeals of the animal rang out into the morning air, startling the local wildlife.

The second prickleboar panicked and made a break away from the hunter, sprinting down the shoreline. It knew that it's best advantage against the human was in raw speed, so it chose to run in the open rather than hide in the foliage.

That was its fatal mistake.

Leo slipped his right index finger inside the trigger guard and squeezed.

CRACK!

Velvet flinched at the sharp sound of the discharge, watching in amazement as the fleeing prickleboar suddenly squealed out and collapsed forward in agony from seemingly nothing. She turned around just in time to see Leo stand up shakily from his cover and push a lever underneath this weapon, causing something metal to fly out of it out of the side and onto the ground.

"Whew! Good hunting." He complemented, wiping a drop of sweat off his forehead in relief.

Velvet raised an eyebrow, eyeing the smoking weapon. "…Say, Leo, what about you? What's your story?" She asked pointedly. "I don't think you've ever told us how you got here."

Leo winced. He knew this conversation was going to happen at one point.

He wouldn't tell her the truth. It was just who he was.

The man shook his head slowly. "…Sorry Velvet." He breathed guiltily. "I'd rather not say." He looked away, avoiding the young woman's eyes.

Velvet was shocked. "What?" She breathed. "Surely you could at least tell me where you're from? Or why you're in Aball?"

Another shake of the head. "I can't."

Shock turned to anger. "So… you're telling me that you expect me to let you in on my whole life story, and be friends with my little brother, but not offer a speck of your own story in return?" Her eyes narrowed at the audacity of the stranger standing in front of him.

The man at least had the decency to look ashamed. "There are some things that I… just can't say, Velvet."

Velvet gave a sigh in exasperation. "Then what  _can_  you tell me about yourself, Leo?" She stressed in agitation. "Who are you, exactly? Where do you come from? What about  _your_ family? Why are you travelling? Can you tell me  _any_  of that?"

She stared at the man expectantly.

"…" Leo opened his mouth, but nothing came out.

"Now that it comes to it," Velvet realized, "I'm pretty sure the only things we know for sure about you, Leo, is that you popped up here in Aball two weeks ago and you like to travel. And nothing else! Is that about right?"

Leo had no answer for her.

With a huff, Velvet turned away from the infuriating man and pulled out a net, beginning to roll the prickleboar onto it.

"Velvet…"

"If you're so special," Velvet muttered angrily as she worked, "I suppose we have nothing more to say. You can be friends with Laphi all you want, but I myself don't see the point in being friends with someone so insistent on being mysterious." She shot him a glare as she grabbed her net in her hand. "Goodbye, Leo."

Leo watched haplessly as the young woman started dragging her kill away from him in fury.

_It's better this way_ , a part of him whispered in his ear.  _You don't belong here anyways._

Leo clenched his fist.

It was always the same voice. The same fear.

No matter how far away he went, no matter how many words he travelled. The voice was always there.

_But…_

The man's fists curled.

_This isn't right!_

With a sudden burst of determination, he ran after the Crowe.

"Velvet!"

She ignored him.

"Velvet!" He caught up to her, ignoring his own kill lying by the lakeshore. He jumped in front of Velvet's path, blocking her from going any further.

"What, Leo?" Velvet sounded angrily exasperated.

"Velvet, listen. I'm sorry that I can't give you much more of an explanation, but all I can tell you is that there's a very, VERY good reason for it."

Velvet gave him a skeptical look.

"But what I can tell you is this much." He caught his breath. He ransacked his mind for a phrase that would quantify his situation as best he could. He opened his mouth.

"I'm from a land that's not on the map."

Silence.

Velvet looked intrigued. "A land that's not on the map…" She parroted.

"…That's it?"

Leo groaned. "Gah! I know! It's not much! But it's all I can possibly give you, so I'm sorry. I know it's unfair to allow me to have so many secrets, but all I can say is that I have a lot of them, and that I have a very good reason for keeping them secret. They're…" Leo struggled for words. "…Personal, I guess."

He shook his head. "Anyways secrets aside, I want to be frank with you. Your brother has been the first person I've befriended for a  _long_  time. I'd hate to be so estranged from his sister like this… I just… I want to be friends, alright?"

A morning breeze blew through the surrounding forest, rustling the leaves overhead in the silence.

Velvet gave the man a strange look. "…You're weird, you know that Leo?"

Leo gave a sheepish grin. "I get that a lot." He admitted. He shook his head. "I guess you could say I've been… I guess you could say… lonely these past few years. Friends aren't something I normally make."

_You can say that again_ … he muttered mentally.

He met the young woman's eyes earnestly. "So… yeah. Sorry about the secrets, but I have my reasons for them. Still, I'd like to hope that we could still be friends?" Leo offered a hand and a hopeful smile.

Velvet gave him a good long look.

He looked so vulnerable. So… starved of human company.

This man… From what little he told her, she knew he was telling the truth. Whatever his secrets, he seemed genuine in his desire for companionship.

She felt sorry for him.

She gave him a smile. "…Alright. I'll give you a chance, Leonex Davidson. If anything, just to give Laphi a friend to talk to about boats while he's sick." She took his hand and shook it.

Leo's face lit up. He was almost giddy as he responded, "Alright! I will, I promise you that."

Velvet looked on with wry amusement. "But you should probably go get your prickleboar. It's going to get maggots soon."

Leo cursed. "Crap, that's right! I'll see you back in Aball then, friend!" He gave her one last grin and sprinted off back towards the lakeside.

Velvet stood there, still holding a wad of netting in her hand, staring thoughtfully at the enigmatic man's retreating form. She shook her head in wry exasperation at the man's strangeness.

Something about him just gave her a good feeling. She didn't know what.

* * *

"Yo! Velvet! Good haul today huh?" Aball's general merchant hailed her as she arrived at his little pocket of town, huffing as she finally let go of the netting dragging the prickleboar behind her.

"Yup! Got two down by Lake Perniya." Velvet grunted as she lifted the boar from the ground onto the butcher's table.

"Two? Well, where's the other?"

About to answer, Velvet was interrupted by a familiar call. "Hey Velvet!" Velvet turned in surprise and recognized the young woman running towards her.

"Niko!" She squealed happily. The two gave each other fond hugs.

Niko held her best friend out at arm's length. "I haven't seen you in a week! Where've you been?" She exclaimed. "You're not sick, are you?!"

Velvet laughed. "I'm fine Niko." She assured her. "I'm sorry, I've just been busy hunting." She gestured at the prickleboar on the table. "I've been working really hard to get that new medicine in stock!"

Niko gave a sympathetic nod. "It's fine Velvet! I bet Laphi will be better in no time with such a caring older sister like you." She assured with an enthusiastic clap.

Velvet smiled. "I hope so."

"Hey Leo! You bagged one too?"

The two girls turned to see Leo dragging his own prickleboar with a net to the shop. "Yeah, Velvet helped showed me the ropes today." He grunted to the shopkeeper, giving Velvet a nod. "Thanks for all of it, Velvet, by the way."

Velvet nodded. "No problem Leo."

She suddenly noticed out of the corner of her eye her best friend Niko standing behind her back, staring… almost rabidly at Leo.

Leo unfortunately noticed as well. "Say… Who's your friend?"

"Oh! Leo, meet Niko. She's a best friend of mine!" Velvet sidestepped and pivoted to introduce Niko.

For some reason, Niko was unbelievably shy, and hedged, "H-hi Leo! Nice to finally meet you!" She gave a cheery wave. Her eyes roamed every inch of his body, drinking in each and every detail.

Leo felt distinctly uncomfortable with the intense stares the girl seemed to be giving him. "Nice to meet you too…" He trailed off hesitantly and promptly turned to the merchant.

"Mind if I cut up some of this meat? I'll sell the rest, I just need some for Drake." He cast a wary look over his shoulder.

Velvet gave him a helpless shrug.

Meat and money in hand, Leo scurried off with a quick "see you later today" to Velvet and headed back as quickly as possible to the Inn and away from the weird village girl.

Velvet sighed. She knew exactly what was going through the mind of her childhood friend.

_Wait for it… 3… 2… 1…_

"NO WAY! THAT WAS HIM!" Niko squealed right in Velvet's ear. Wincing, Velvet replied. "Yes, Niko. That was Leo. Honestly, I don't see why you get so excited about newcomers every time they show up."

"Please! That man's the talk of the town! He's so foreign!" Niko gasped, retroactively connecting the dots. "Were you hunting with him today? Oooh! You must tell me EVERYTHING!" She glomped on Velvet.

Velvet recoiled from the assault. "A-agh! Niko! Get off! It was just a hunting trip! We just killed some prickleboars!"

Niko stopped and smiled evilly. "Oh? Hunting prickleboars before the sun is up? How very  _inefficient_  of you, Velvet. Is there something going on that you aren't mentioning, perchance?"

Caught horribly off-guard, Velvet sputtered at the insinuation. "N-No! It was just-!"

Niko was merciless. In a low whisper, she got close to Velvet. "I won't tell anyone, Velvet. I promise in the name our friendship! Are you in love with Leonex Davidson?"

Velvet flinched away violently from her, face beet red. "NIKO! I am in nothing of the sort!"

Niko grinned. "Denial is a drug, you know! It's bad for you!"

Velvet seethed in a low voice. "Niko. The man's 25 years old. I'm 16."

Niko's eyes narrowed. "I don't judge."

Velvet shouted in exasperation. It was time to get out of here. Fast. "Hey," she called to the shopkeeper vainly trying not to look as if he was listening. "Y-Yes Velvet?" "You can have the entire prickleboar, I'll come pick the money up later today, alright?"

Niko pouted. "Was it something I said?!"

Velvet shook her head unconvincingly. "I uh, have something to do! I'll see you around Niko!" With that, she turned tail and fled.

Niko waved her hand in goodbye, shouting, "Bye Velvet! Be sure to let me know if Leonex Davidson's prickle "boar's" you! I'll be sure to set him straight for you!"

Velvet cringed in royal embarrassment as the lewd comment attracted the bewildered attention of passerby.  _That Niko!_ She broke into a clumsy run away from the stares, the heat crawling up her neck.

Niko cackled with laughter as she watched her childhood friend sprinting away from the crime scene.

Oh, sometimes it was just  _too easy_  to get under her skin.


	5. C03 - Restraint

**Chapter 3 – Restraint.**

Leo stared at the map in front of him. "Hm. What do you think? The far continent?"

Laphi, sitting across the dining table from him, shook his head. "No way. While that sounds amazing, it's infamous for being way too hard to get to. There's no guarantee we'd even find a ship that was adventuring out that far! Some scholars estimate that with the current rate of human technological progress, we might be able to explore the far continent in a whole century. That's way too far in the future to plan for." He shook his head again. "Best plan to only travel around in Midgand for now."

Leo's eyes returned to Laphi's hand-drawn map of Desolation. "Yeah… I guess that's just plain out of the question." He hummed thoughtfully. "Hmm… Then let's see here… Islegand? We could get a ship to Port Cadnix." He suggested.

Laphi shook his head again. "But that's boring! There's nothing to see on Islegand… Just some mining towns and weapon crafters."

Leo sighed in exasperation. "Laphi, listen. You've gotta start somewhere. Alright? You need boring parts in an adventure to make the exciting parts even more exciting!"

"…I guess you're right." Laphi conceded grudgingly.

The two were discussing the best sea route to take around Desolation to get the most out of one's trip from Taliesin and back. Their current theoretical location was in Southgand, having checked out all of Yesult and the smaller towns around the archipelago to their hearts' desires.

Laphi shook his head and glanced over the map. "What if we chartered a trip through the strait between Midgand and Westgand?" His eyes glinted with excitement. "That way, we can cut diagonally across the known world in one fell swoop and see most of Midgand too!"

"But then we'd be missing out of the major port in Westgand, which would be Reneed." Leo pointed out. "A port that's still in construction at the moment, but once completed is sure to become a bustling trading hub for the entire continent."

Laphi considered the dock in question. "…How about we go from Yesult to Port Cadnix, then to Reneed, and then go through to Port Zekson through the strait between Northgand and Westgand?"

Leo considered the route. "But by going to Reneed, you'd be halfway to Northgand. That's just inefficient!"

"Alright boys, lunch's ready!"

Velvet intruded on their conversation with two steaming hot bowls of porridge, laid in front of each boy.

Laphi grinned. "Thanks Sis!" He leant into the steam trail and inhaled powerfully. "This stuff smells great!"

Velvet smiled. "No problem, Laphi. Let me know how it tastes! I'm not sure how the seasoning turned out this time."

Leo made a dismissive gesture. "Eh. I could've made it better."

Velvet gave him a solid whack on the shoulder with her soup ladle, porridge bits included. "Leo, if I let you within 5 paces of a kitchen, the world would immediately destroy itself in self-defense!"

Leo groaned. "I'm kidding!" He exclaimed. "I'm well aware of how crappy my cooking is! No need to rub it in." He sourly wiped the porridge off his coat. "Or on, as the case might be."

Laphi gave a chuckle as his older sister rolled her eyes and went back to the kitchen to wipe off the soiled ladle and pour her own portion.

Leo was over at the Crowe residence for the umpteenth time it seemed, a few months after he had arrived in Aball. Over that long time period, despite his reluctance towards telling people where his origins, he was generally accepted as familiar member of the village now.

It was nice, Laphi thought with a smile, to have a friend like Leo around.

"Hey, what if instead of going from Taliesin to Yesult, we went straight to Port Zekson?" Leo asked while stuffing his mouth.

Laphicet pondered this. Then shook his head, slipping a spoonful into his mouth, chewing thoughtfully. "That's too inefficient. The sea currents in the strait between Westgand and Northgand are formidable and roll from west to east, slowing any sea travel headed that way by a factor of days."

Leo sighed. "Figures." He slotted another spoonful into his mouth. The two ate in silence, staring at the same map on the table, the various clattering of Velvet's housework resounding through the warm household. The happy chirping of the birds outside penetrated the windows of the residence, adding to the ambiance.

It was just another relaxing day in Aball.

"Oh!" Leo exclaimed, dropping his spoon. "I've got it!" Laphi looked at him expectantly.

He pointed his finger at Taliesin. "We go from Taliesin, through the narrows to  _Hellawes_. And then from there, we make a counter-clockwise circle around the major continents, going from Hellawes to Reneed, then to Port Cadnix, then to Yesult, and then we'd backtrack just a little bit and charter a ship to Port Zekson."

"That way," he continued animatedly, "we can fully utilize the strong winds in the strait and speed up the journey back home, making up for lost time spent going around Midgand from Yesult. Then, we'd go straight back to Taliesin from there. BOOM!" Leo shouted triumphantly, raising his hands in celebration and leaning back in his chair looking at Laphi expectantly. "Whaddya think?!"

Velvet suddenly appeared behind him and good-naturedly pushed him forward in his chair. " _I think_  that you should finish your food before you send it flying everywhere!" She berated.

"Awe… Velvet!" Leo whined. "We're on the edge of charting a proper route from rural Eastgand all the way around the major ports of Desolation and back!"

Velvet looked wholly unimpressed. "Well!" She huffed. "I'm certain the continents won't shift in the time that it takes for you finish eating. So why don't you do that before it gets cold?" She plopped down in a seat next to Leo, setting her own portion of porridge down.

Leo grunted. "Yes, mother." He muttered.

Laphi chuckled. "It's alright, Velvet. We'll finish our food-we always do, right Leo?"

Leo gave him a wide-eyed look of disbelief, unseen by Velvet who was busy inspecting the texture of her food. "Yeah! Totally!" He called out louder than was necessary over his shoulder.

Velvet's eyebrow twitched as she sent a glare at Leo.

"Anyways, Leo!" Laphi quickly changed the subject before his sister caught on. "That route actually might be the best possible one. I think you're on to something! But…"

Leo sighed. "But…?" He prompted.

Laphi was a bit sheepish in his response. "Thanks to the global cooling, it might not be possible to go to Hellawes, if we're talking about the far future. So, we might not be able to go to Northgand at all."

Leo groaned. "Meaning that my entire route would be useless then. There's always something…" He muttered sourly.

Velvet looked at the map with interest over her porridge. "So… you two are planning a trip to Islegand?"

Laphi brightened. "No way, Velvet! Not just Islegand! Across the entirety of Midgand! Maybe even the whole world!"

Velvet chuckled. "That's crazy talk." She remarked dismissively. "Think about how far away all of it is! These things you two are talking about; snow, sand, far off continents. It's all looking to be just a tiny bit out of my depth!"

Leo waved a dismissive hand. "Nah, Velvet. Everyone has a little bit of themselves that yearns to travel!" He pointed to spaces on the map.

"Wouldn't you love to see the roaring fires of Mount Killaraus? The sun-scorched beaches of the Southgand Archipelago? The towering castles of Loegres? Doesn't that just light a fire under your rear and make you want to just leave on a ship right  _now_?!" He exclaimed.

Velvet shook her head in exasperation. "The only thing I want to see right now is you two finishing your food before it gets cold. Now come on!" She urged. "Or I'll light a fire under  _you_!"

Leo shook his head in mock disappointment. He looked at Laphi. "Women. They just don't understand us men."

Laphi giggled, while Velvet let out a warning growl. Leo turned quickly and held out both hands disarmingly. "Kidding! Kidding! Please, no fire is needed. Look, I'm eating. See?" He began stuffing the (now cold) porridge into his mouth with fervor. Suddenly, he choked as liquid went down his trachea.

Velvet sighed and slapped a firm hand on her friend's back, eliciting a rough cough from him as he cleared his throat of its blockage. "Come on, Leo. Honestly, I have to worry over you twice as much as I have to worry over Laphi!" Was it just Leo's imagination or did she seem fond of that fact?

Laphi shook his head, eating his own porridge at a steady pace. "It's good, Velvet! You made it just right! Not too sweet, not too flavorless!"

Velvet smiled. "That's good to hear, Laphi! I'll make sure to write down this recipe then once we're done."

Laphi suddenly turned animated. "Oh! That's right, Velvet! I saw that the general store has a cookbook for sale!"

Velvet chuckled. "Is my cooking that bad that you're that excited to have me make you something else?" She asked in mock hurt.

Laphi backtracked hurriedly. "N-no! It's not that! It's just that-"

"-That you want to try something new. I understand Laphi. I was just teasing." Velvet chuckled. "Alright. I'll go check it out when Leo and I go hunting today. What dishes does it have?"

"It has all sorts of things from all over the world! Like Mabo Curry! My friend from town told me all about how Mabo Curry is so tasty! So spicy yet salty! The perfect mix of flavor!"

Velvet laughed. "Laphi! You're drooling! You're going to make my porridge feel bad!"

Laphi looked sheepish. "D-don't worry! I'll finish your porridge no matter what!"

Velvet nodded. "That's good." A wry smile found its way onto her face. "Finish your porridge, and I might just buy that cookbook for you."

"Really!?" Laphi's eyes got wider.

"Only," Velvet held up a stern finger, "If you wash the dishes while we're out, and spend the rest of the day resting properly in bed. No more talking about sea routes."

Laphi nodded eagerly. "Okay!"

Leo watched as the two siblings fondly.

He deeply treasured all of this. Normal, plain, moments. It was times like this when he could happily forget everything else.

Everything…

He closed his eyes with force.

Don't think about it. Forget about it. Don't think about it.

With a practiced effort, the man buried the emotions away.

"…eo…? Leo?"

Suddenly, Leo opened his eyes and looked at Velvet, who was standing up from her seat, looking concerned.

He blinked. "Sorry, what?"

Eyeing him closely, Velvet asked again, "Are you ready to go hunting? We've got a few more hours until sundown."

Gathering himself, Leo nodded. "Sure! Let's go!" Forcing his thoughts away from the darkness, he plonked his spoon in his bowl and stood up from the table, letting Velvet lead the way.

Laphi watched as the two trotted over to the front door and gathered their things. Leo grabbed his strange weapon leaning against the doorway while Velvet strapped on her familiar gauntlet blade.

"We'll be back soon, Laphi!" Velvet called. "Make sure you keep your promise if you want that cookbook of yours!"

Laphi nodded vigorously. "Of course!"

Satisfied, Velvet looked to Leo, all ready. She opened the door and held it open. Leo took it, and mouthed to Laphi on his way out, " _Route without Hellawes_."

Laphi gave a covert grin and nodded imperceptibly, giving two thumbs up.

Leo grinned back, and then shut the door behind him, leaving the sickly Crow alone at home once again. Just him and the empty house.

Like always.

Laphi sighed and surreptitiously glanced at Leo's bowl. It was barely half-empty. That man was such a liar.

Well, time to do some dishes. He groaned.

* * *

"Velvet! Crossfire left!" Leo called out as he lifted his rifle.

"Got it!" The young woman deftly dodged the tusks of an enraged prickleboar and lunged to the right, giving her hunting partner a perfect line of sight on the target.

The prickleboar had no idea what was coming next.

CRACK!

The sharp report of live fire echoed through the Tranquil Woods. The boar squealed in pain as the round landed right in its shoulder, its muscles locking up in shock.

"Leo! Behind you!"

Leo cursed as he made a mad dodge away from the charging prickleboar seeking retribution for its mate. The man yelled frantically as he dodged a side-swipe of the tusks, "A little help would be nice!" He fumbled with the lever on his rifle and managed to eject the shell and chamber a new round while side-stepping the increasingly enraged animal. At such close range, it was nearly impossible to land a hit on such an erratic target. He tried anyways, desperately firing from the hip.

CRACK!

Leo cursed as all he managed to do was splatter dirt and dust over himself and soil his glasses as the round burrowed ineffectively into the forest floor. He dodged another charge, the wind rushing by him as the enraged beast barely clipped his jacket. Suddenly, a figure intruded between him and the raging boar within the cloud of dirt, using a blade to fend off the boar's lethal tusks.

"Hang in there!" Velvet yelled as she swiped and kicked, driving the animal away.

Leo quickly made some distance between the two and cocked his rifle, breathing heavily. His breathing hitched as he aimed at the two rapidly moving forms.

Suddenly, he saw another boar rushing at the two from out of the woodwork. He switched targets over and inhaled. He trained the rifle, leading the target and judging the velocity of the boar's charge.

He exhaled.

CRACK!

The round punched an entry wound right into the incoming boar's eye, killing it instantly. As it tumbled lifelessly to the ground in the distance, Leo turned back to his hunting partner while cocking his rifle, ready to give help.

She didn't need it.

The boar squealed in agony as Velvet's blade crunched firmly through its vulnerable belly. Velvet yelled fiercely as she pulled the sword out, splattering hot blood all over the forest floor. The boar slumped on the floor lifelessly.

The two gasped for breath as they looked around warily for any further enemies. The aftermath of the adrenaline shot through their veins, making their movements jittery and halting.

"Well," Leo breathed, "I'd say that's enough prickleboar for a cookbook, wouldn't you say?"

Velvet wiped the sweat off her forehead. "No kidding!" She exclaimed. "Just our luck to run into a whole family today."

Leo caught his breath and straightened, reaching into his coat and pulling out three rounds. He slotted the fresh bullets one by one into the rifle feed absently as he glanced over at his partner. "Thanks for the save, by the way." He grinned.

Velvet sheathed her blade with a flick of her arm. "No problem!" She returned his grin. "We hunters have to look out for each other huh?"

Leo waved a hand. "Nah, with the way you fight? You'd do just fine without me."

Velvet laughed. "I appreciate the complement! I do try hard to meet Arthur's standards."

Leo grinned. "Arthur's first maxim, huh?"

Velvet automatically bent and rose her right arm in a firm salute, grinning. "Plans must be solid, and reactions flexible!" She declared heatedly.

Leo chuckled. "Quite the dedicated student. Come on." He urged. "Let's finish up before the sun goes down."

"Right!"

The two began the arduous work of butchering the prickleboars right at the spot, obtaining the most valuable parts to sell. It would not be feasible to bring all three prickleboars back to town, after all.

Leo grunted as he wiped the sweat off his brow with his forearm, careful not to get any of the animal blood on his hands on his face. He glanced over at his partner, expertly severing tendons with a hunting knife. Leo adjusted the grip on his own knife and went back to sawing through bone.

"Laphi's looking better these days." He commented conversationally, breaking the calm silence.

Velvet smiled. "He sure is! Although…" She shrugged. "I'm not sure if that's because of the new medicine…" She gestured to him with a bloody knife. "…Or because he has you around."

Leo shrugged lightly with a grin. "Some would say that laughter is medicine in of itself." He slapped the boar's liver into a pouch with effort. He sighed happily. "You know, it's really heartwarming to see him so joyful all the time."

"It really is…"

Velvet's expression abruptly fell. Her working hands slowed down. "But…" She breathed. "Before you came around, it wasn't like this, really."

Leo stopped his work and turned to look at her seriously. This was a subject that hadn't yet been breached between the two. "…How so?" He prompted.

Velvet sighed and also put down her knife, staring gloomily down at the prickleboar's gutted insides. "Before you came around," she explained softly, "Laphi was a sad child." She fisted her hands.

"He tried his best to make it seem like everything was fine, and that he was happy just waiting for his fevers to go away. He swallowed every bite and went to bed as soundly as he could every night, acting as if he was alright. But I could always see through his forced smiles." She let out a humorless laugh. "I'm not his big sister for nothing, after all."

Velvet's eyes scrunched closed. "It's just… So hard sometimes…" She breathed.

She heard footsteps approaching. She looked up to see Leo walked up to her and kneel down, enveloping her in a reassuring hug. "Come on, Velvet." He intoned softly. "You do so much good for that kid already. Don't be so hard on yourself!"

Velvet squeezed her eyes shut and held onto the man, letting all the pent-up emotion out. She fisted her hands roughly behind the man's back. "Why?!" She cried.

"Why does my Laphi have to be like this?!" Velvet gave a sob as she buried her face in Leo's shoulder.

Leo gently shook his head. He let out softly, "I don't know." He pulled her away from him and steadied her shoulders out in front of him.

He reminded her firmly, "But what I do know is that he does, and he needs help." He smiled supportively. "You're strong, Velvet." He promised. "Stronger than I ever could be, that's for damn sure." His lips morphed into a self-deprecating smile. "If there's anybody who can keep your brother on course in these rough waters, it's you."

Velvet let out a wet laugh. "That's reassuring," she murmured thankfully, "but don't forget about yourself, you know."

She patted Leo's hand on her shoulder with a wet smile. "You have a magic way of making Laphi brighten in a way that I could never understand. It's amazing, really!"

Leo grinned. "Hey, what can I say?" He shrugged. "I love talking to the kid too." His grin wavered.

"I love talking to both of you, really…"

_Too much, actually._

His eyes hardened abruptly as the thoughts he had pushed away earlier resurfaced once more. It was inevitable, after all.

_Far too much._

Velvet watched intently as the man she had grown to know over the past few months spaced out once again. It was happening more and more frequently. That expression… It was so foreign and so sorrowful. It told of a man with innumerable regrets tucked away and repressed just under the surface.

She hated that expression. Whatever was going through the man's mind was something she wanted gone.

"…Say, Leo?" Velvet asked. Leo gave himself a little shake and glanced inquisitively at Velvet. "Do you think you could do me a favor?" She asked.

Leo nodded. "I'd try my best, but what is it?"

Velvet asked earnestly, "I know you're going to be leaving eventually, but do you think you could stay in this village for at least the rest of the year? For Laphi?"

The expression on Leo's face in response to this was not what she had hoped for. Not at all.

Of all the emotions she'd thought her proposal would elicit, the trepidation and slight hint of fear in his face was not at all what she expected.

* * *

Leo sighed.

He'd been doing a lot of that recently, he'd noticed.

The water lapped at the lake edge close to where he sat alone, looking out contemplatively at the vast lake Perniya as the sun went down over the distant horizon, sending brilliant streaks of golden rays through the sky.

He had stayed behind and given Velvet all the meat, saying that he'd wanted to be alone for a while. The older Crowe had been reluctant to leave the obviously troubled man alone but had left when he insisted.

The sound of flapping caught his attention as he watched a duck come in for a landing on the nearby waters, landing gently and kicking its feet, contently wading on the surface of the lake.

"It's nice huh?" Leo observed to the duck. "It's nice to be alone sometimes."

The bird paid him no mind.

Leo raised his gaze towards the setting sun.

"I… I've stayed here far too long." He ran a hand through his hair.

He explained to the duck, "It's always been like this, for someone like me. Travelling between worlds is a sort of occupation that really doesn't lend itself well to friends." He sighed again, his arm falling from his head.

"In the beginning, after I'd realized that my device had effectively left me marooned away from Earth's universe," he muttered contemplatively, "I still tried to make friends. It was natural, you know?"

The man looked towards the east, towards the clearing where he and Velvet had shared their first hunting trip stupidly early in the morning all those months ago. "It's human nature to want to bond," He reasoned softly, "to share their experiences with each other."

His mind turned to the warm memories of the past few months with the Crowes. The joy, the feeling of happiness whenever they called his name, or whenever they smiled when they saw his face. The feeling of  _being home_ whenever he stepped into their house. He sighed,  _again_.

"…But it's also human nature to NOT travel between worlds." He muttered.

"If I'm to try and get back to Earth's universe, I have to just keep jumping universes, hoping that eventually, I'll land back on Earth by sheer chance." He reached his right hand up and gently slipped his glasses off the bridge of his nose. The man stared quietly at the now blurry vista in front of him.

"Which leaves me at my main problem."

He watched the vague image of a flock of birds crossing the sunset in the distance, a picturesque scene of natural beauty, wholly unappreciated. Absently, Leo sent a practiced thought to the device in his head, triggering the wires in his optical nerves to activate and display a crisp augmented reality image in his vision.

He let out a breath. "I have to leave. I always have to leave."

The man stared gloomily at the floating virtual box holding a progress bar and a percentile value.

7.52%.

Slowly but steadily, his time in this world was slipping through his fingers.

He dismissed the box from his vision and replaced his glasses on his nose, glancing over at the wading duck. He elaborated, "…I've grown to be terrified of getting close to anyone I meet, anywhere."

His mind ran over countless faces and names, all blurry and vague from disuse. Ones that he'd never, ever see again.

"The closer I get, the harder it is when I say goodbye." He closed his eyes in agitation.

"And I will have to say goodbye to everyone. No matter what."

The duck, having found no fish in the nearby region, suddenly spread its wings and took off from the water, away from the irrelevant human making strange noises.

Leo watched as it flew upwards and into the sky and met up with another flock of ducks. The group travelled away into the waning evening light, together. The man looked on in envy from his solitary position on the ground.

"I've been wandering so long…" He breathed to himself.

"…That I've forgotten what it feels like to belong."

He reached inside his coat and pulled out his weathered notebook, gently flipping the crinkling pages until he found the sketch of his wife. His eyes softened and wavered as they roamed over the contents of the pencil-drawn portrait sketch.

Cascading blonde hair. Warm brown eyes. The hint of a smile playing on her lips.

That was one face and name he'd never forget, no matter how many worlds he travelled.

His expression became marred with sorrow. He shut the book quietly, holding it up to his forehead, closing his eyes in pain and self-hatred. The man stayed like that for a long time, surrounded by the relaxing ambient noise of the tranquil waters lapping the shores and the flocks of ducks flying together in the distance.

Alone.


	6. C04 - Goodbye

**Chapter 4 – Goodbye.**

The sound of laughter rang throughout the central portion of Aball as children danced between the stalls.

Autumn had arrived, and with it, the traders from Taliesin. There was a general atmosphere of excitement and energy as the villagers mingled with the foreigners, buying all the foreign goods they could afford for the winter. Dogs romped between groups of people, infected by the energy of the humans, while the children chased them and tried their damndest to capture the furry beasts in hugs.

Velvet and Arthur trotted through all this excitement, themselves cheery and happy seeing many familiar faces in the foreigners.

"Arthur! Velvet!" A woman called in front of a temporary stall selling fruit.

Arthur smiled while Velvet waved enthusiastically. "Long time no see, Amy!" Velvet cried as she ran over and gave the merchant a happy hug who laughed and reciprocated.

Meanwhile Arthur walked over more sedately, a warm smile on his face. He glanced over the wares on the table with an impressed frown. "Quite the haul here, Amy." He commented lightly. "Almost all of the traders here have had their stocks impacted by the Daemonblight and the falling temperatures, yet you on the other hand seem to be doing quite well." He observed.

Amy pulled away from Velvet and gave a happy grin. "Yep! Real proud of myself for scrounging up all of this." She gave a grand gesture encompassing the wide variety of fruits and vegetables displayed on the table. "I managed to find some farmers in Midgand who've found a nice niche in the Aldina Plains frontier with fertile soil and warm temperatures. They've got quite the defensive wall going right now as well!"

Velvet's eyes shined as she took in all the different foreign fruit. "Wow! Look at all of these berries!" She turned to Amy curiously. "Did all of this come from that one settlement?"

Amy nodded proudly. "Yep!  _And_  I'm the first merchant to buy and sell their goods! The first merchant of Stonebury!" She pronounced proudly.

Arthur examined some product with a practiced eye, humming. "Stonebury huh?" Suddenly, he paused, looking as if he was listening to something nobody else could hear. "…Yes, I think that would be good." He murmured.

Velvet cocked her head. "What does Seres say?" She asked.

Amy looked on in confusion. Velvet explained in an aside, "Arthur's an exorcist, so he can see and talk to Malakhim!" Amy's skeptical look didn't change.

The self-pronounced exorcist began to gather a good portion of fruits and vegetables, expertly selecting them carefully and placing them gently in the bag one-handed. He responded to Velvet absently as he worked, "Seres suggested that we buy a lot of these berries, as they would most likely go well with your cooking." He gave her a look. "Especially your quiche."

Velvet grinned. "Hey, that's not a bad idea! My thanks to Seres." She turned back to Amy. "Sounds like a plan?" She asked.

Amy grinned back. "Absolutely! I can always count on you two to buy the more exotic foodstuffs for your dishes. That brother of yours is a lucky boy, I'll tell you that!" Velvet gave a laugh in response.

The trader put a thoughtful finger to her lips. "Say, how have you guys fared with global cooling and the Daemonblight and the like yourselves? It's been tough times wherever we go nowadays, Stonebury notwithstanding."

Arthur tied and shouldered the full bag of groceries grimly. "Aball hasn't gone unscathed." He explained sadly. "The crops are yielding less and less due to the colder temperatures, and packs of daemons have even been sighted around the outskirts of town. It's getting more and more difficult to maintain the walls with the daemons trying to break through whenever they get the chance."

A bright-faced Velvet gave her serious brother-in-law a pat on the back. "But we'll be fine!" She exclaimed brightly. "We have a resident exorcist to drive away the daemons!" She grinned at Arthur who gave an amused hmph.

Amy gave a shrug. "If you say so." She shook her head skeptically. "I feel like if all of the soldiers in Midgand couldn't take on the daemons, forgive me if I'm a little skeptical of what a self-declared 'exorcist' can really do."

Velvet narrowed her eyes.

Before she said anything however, Arthur put a hand on her shoulder to stop her. "I'll make no claims about how much I can really do to protect this village, but I can say for sure," He gave a determined nod, "that I will do everything in my power to make it safer. That's a promise."

Amy grinned in response, declaring, "And that's what I like about you, Arthur. Never change!"

Arthur gave out a chuckle and then turned to his wife's sister. "The total for the groceries is 233 gald. Give the woman her due, would you, Velvet?"

Velvet nodded and trotted over, opening her gald pouch and laying the denominations in organized piles.

Suddenly, a horrible blood-curdling scream tore through the village.

Amy jumped and gasped in horror. "Wh-what was that?!"

Velvet and Arthur both just groaned automatically. Arthur raised a hand to tiredly rub his eyebrow, while Velvet slapped a full-on palm to her face.

"Guys? What's going on? Is that… a pig?"

Amy looked on in utter bewilderment as the noise got closer, recognizing the sound of angry oinking accompanying the screams. She noticed with confusion that all of the villagers seemed to have the same reaction as Arthur and Velvet, acting as if this was a normal occurrence and going about their day.

Arthur just tiredly responded, "You don't want to know. Velvet?" He prompted.

Velvet finished double-checking the gald amounts and nodded, giving Amy another brief hug. "Thanks for the fruit, Amy! Good luck with Stonebury!"

The two walked away towards the noise as it arrived in the center of Aball. Amy looked on slack-jawed as a man in a coat appeared around the corner, sprinting forward while screaming girlishly as an enraged sow charged after him, oinking furiously.

"What the fuck…?" She muttered.

Annoyed, Velvet bade her brother-in-law goodbye. "I'll see you back at the house." Arthur nodded and then continued on his way, hefting the groceries and paying the ridiculous cacophony no mind.

Velvet sighed and rolled up her sleeves, reluctantly trudging towards the scene.

Sweat running down his face and heaving heavily as he ran for his life, Leo caught sight of Velvet. He cried desperately, "Velvet! Please!"

Rolling her eyes, Velvet simply beckoned him over with a finger and an exasperated smile.

Like a possessed spirit, the man changed course and dashed over in her direction. With practiced ease, Velvet sidestepped the man's charge and moved directly behind him once he passed, putting her hands on her hips and staring down resolutely the charging sow.

The sow instantly skidded to a halt right in front of Velvet, sheepish.

"Yaba! Bad!" Velvet scolded the rappig by name, whose ears drooped in response. Velvet sighed, waving her hand. "Come on then." She urged.

With a reluctant oink, the rappig allowed herself to be shooed back to the pen in the corner of Aball by Velvet, while Leo, gasping for breath, followed at a safe distance behind them.

"Hey Velvet! Thanks for helping out again!" The pen keeper greeted with depressing familiarity as she shooed the pig back inside the pen and firmly shut the gate.

Velvet grunted as she nodded and accepted the money the man offered. She turned around and glared at the man sheepishly walking towards her.

"That makes this what, the fourth time? Honestly, I have no idea why I even try." She asked in exasperation as she reluctantly dropped the gald into Leo's hand.

Leo at least had the decency to look ashamed as he pocketed the money Velvet made for him. "Fifth, actually." He corrected sheepishly. "Maybe it's because I'm just too handsome for you to resist my charms?"

Velvet sighed and thwacked him with the back of her hand.

"Kidding! Gosh!"

Shaking his head, Leo changed the subject. "Anyways, you headed back to the house? I saw you and Arthur got quite the haul today."

Velvet nodded. "Are you thinking about coming over?"

Leo smiled. "If you don't mind."

Velvet groaned in mock dismay. "Oh no, and here I was hoping that the bane of all sows would spare our poor household his girlish screams."

"Hey!" Leo gaped as he searched for a proper rebuttal. "…I resent that you know!"

Velvet smirked as the two began to trot towards the house.

"So," Velvet opened. "Buy anything from the traders?"

Leo shook his head. "As exciting as buying grapes is, I was too busy being chased by angry pigs to indulge myself."

Velvet laughed. "That's right, you still don't cook."

Leo cringed. "For good reason! You remember the last time I tried to make something for you and Laphi?"

Velvet's face soured. "I barely had enough presence of mind to slap the spoon out of Laphi's hands after taking the first bite! If he had eaten that, as weak as he was, he definitely would have been bedridden for a week!"

The older sister glared at him accusingly. Leo sputtered in defense, "I-I know that! We've been over this, Velvet! I swear, I thought that soup was my best work yet!"

"Best work yet?!" Velvet gaped. "You had me puking with  _just one spoonful!_ "

Leo whined in hurt. "Well, I didn't think it was  _that_ bad when I taste-tested it…"

Velvet shook her head in exasperation. "It never ceases to amaze me how you can be so adept at building these insanely genius devices, and yet the simple task of making  _soup_  is a task you utterly and completely cannot accomplish even remotely well."

Leo sighed. He let out without thinking, "Bah, it runs in the family."

Velvet raised a single inquisitive eyebrow. "How so?"

Coughing roughly, realizing his misstep, Leo glanced around, noting with wonder, "Oh, wow! Look at all of these trees! The leaves are so orange!"

Velvet facepalmed. She let out through gritted teeth, "Alright, alright, secrets, got it, moving on."

Leo gave a sad smile, and then followed through with the change of topic.

"Say, what's up with the hair?" He gestured at her messier-than-normal raven black hair.

Velvet ran a hand over her hair self-consciously. "You noticed, huh? My comb broke, and I haven't had the money to buy a new one at the store."

Leo laughed as she tried vainly to flatten a particularly stubborn strand that kept bouncing back up. "How could I not? It's a damn Crowe's nest up there!"

Velvet groaned. "Please, don't. If you make another one of those I won't help you when the pigs decide to attack you again."

Leo's mouth instantly zipped shut.

Velvet laughed at his horrified expression.

The two entered the grounds of the Crowe household, one of the farther houses from the village proper.

"Be nice to Laphi today huh? I think his fever's getting worse again." Velvet said seriously as they approached the front door.

Leo nodded. "Of course."

Before they reached the door, it opened abruptly. Arthur stepped out into the fresh air fully dressed with a sword strapped to his back.

"Arthur!" Velvet called in surprise. "I didn't know you were leaving today!"

Arthur sadly told her, "As it turns out, I am needed somewhere. I shall be back within a few days." He smiled at Velvet's gloomy expression. "Don't worry Velvet. I'm sure Leo will happily oblige you with his company until I return." He nodded in the man's direction.

His eyes hardened as he read the man's subtle hunching of his back and tensing of muscles.

"Sure." Leo replied as neutrally as possible. "…Although I'm not sure why you'd want me around."

Velvet, ignorant of Leo's hesitance, gave an airy shrug, "I know right? Who would ever want you around?"

"Hey! I also resent that, you know!"

Arthur, still eyeing Leo carefully, suddenly spoke up, "…Actually… Velvet, I may just stay in town just for one more night." He abruptly suggested. "The matters I must attend to can wait for just one more day." He smiled warmly at Velvet. "Besides, I couldn't miss your berry-infused quiche, now could I?"

Velvet's face lit up brightly in an instant. "That's great Arthur!" She exclaimed, beaming. "I'll make sure to make four portions for tonight then!" She grinned at Leo. "You're eating with us tonight." It wasn't a question.

"W-well hold on now-" Velvet latched a firm grip onto Leo's arm and proceeded to drag him inside past Arthur. "See you tonight Arthur! Come on, Leo! We've got to get the dough rising before it's too late!"

"Why are you involving me?! You know how bad I am at cooking!"

"I just need you to occupy Laphi while I do all the work. You're not stepping within spitting distance of the kitchen or I'll add your hide to the quiche too."

"Gah, alright! Now let go of me, woman!"

Arthur watched as the two bumbled inside his house, Velvet giving him a quick cheery wave before shutting the door behind Leo, cutting off the two's bickering. They really had gotten close. He never would have expected that the strange man he picked up so many months ago would wind up being a close family friend of both his daughter-in-law and son-in-law.

His eyes narrowed.

He glanced over, looking at seemingly nothing, listening. "Yes." He nodded. "I saw it too. The man is hiding something." He looked deep in thought. He listened.

"…No. I'll stay here another night before leaving. This man is too important to my family to let this go unchecked. I've accepted that he has his secrets and so have the rest of my family, but if he's planning on leaving soon…" He paused to listen.

He gave a nod. "Yes." He contemplated the shut door to his homestead.

"Quite the enigma, that one." He breathed.

* * *

The sun was low in the sky, the shadows growing longer and the sky changing hues. The houses of the village could be seen dotted throughout the trees, little islands of brown in a sea of orange and yellow.

"You're leaving soon. Aren't you?"

The uttered words were soft, but Leo heard them all the same in the quiet wind. He honestly wasn't surprised to hear them. Nothing ever seemed to go over Laphi's head.

The two were perched on top of the Crowe household, watching the sunset from their vantage point. Leo had managed to convince Velvet that Laphi could not possibly die from a few minutes spent on the roof, and that a little fresh air might even do him good. His fever was down after dinner, too.

Leo didn't bother pretending otherwise and played with a loose shingle on the roof, eyes looking everywhere but at the boy he had come to call his friend.

"…Yeah, kiddo." He uttered softly. Leo could feel Laphi's instant dismay even without looking at him. His fists clenched.

"For what it's worth…" The man whispered into the wind. "...I'm sorry."

Laphi's question was equally soft, as if they were currently isolated in time and if they spoke loud enough, time would notice and bring them back in, and speed them towards their parting. "Why?" He pleaded. "Why do you have to leave?"

Leo glanced over at him. His heart broke when he saw the tears in the kid's eyes. He felt so much pain for doing this.

But… If he stayed, this pain would become twice as sharp. And he was already hurting so much.

"Because It'll happen eventually." He sighed.

Laphi looked up, confused. "Do you need to go home or something?"

Leo shrugged. "In a manner of speaking, I suppose." He struggled to find words vague enough yet fitting enough.

"Because of who I am, and all of the secrets I carry… I have to keep travelling." He shook his head tiredly. "I have to keep travelling, in the hopes that someday, I'll find my home again. Someday, I'll find my way back to my own family…"

He looked down fondly at the yard below and watched as Velvet walked outside and struck up a conversation happily with Arthur, who was busy chopping firewood with rhythmic cracks.

His lips upturned into a bittersweet smile. "…It's been nice." He admitted. "…Too nice."

He shook his head. "These past few months, I've been selfish. I've been trying to forget the fact that all of you aren't my own family. I've been trying to ignore the fact that one day… I'll have to leave and never see you all again."

Leo glanced at Laphi. Laphi's expression was one of utter dismay, but at the same time, it seemed there was contemplation and thoughtfulness present as well. Leo never spoke about his past.

After a pause, Laphi summarized, "So… You're leaving because you don't want to get hurt even more saying goodbye?"

Leo nodded slowly. "Actually, it's… more like I'm… scared of saying goodbye." He stared off at the sunset soberly. "The closer I get, the harder the separation. It's the reasonable thing to do to just isolate myself, and to not get close to anyone and just keep moving forward. Alone."

"That sounds horrible!" Laphi abruptly cried. "Wouldn't you get lonely that way?!"

"Why do you think I've gotten so close to you all these past few months?" Leo shook his head miserably. "I let my emotions get the best of me." He glanced over fondly and ruffled the kid's messy blonde hair. "You got the best of me."

Laphi grunted in dismay, fighting off Leo's hand. The two sat there in silence, one struggling to process the information, the other sitting in silence and misery.

"I never meant to get so close to you guys. I'm sorry." Leo apologized sincerely.

Laphi's fists clenched. The boy stood up roughly to Leo's surprise.

"Well I'm not!" He declared fiercely.

"You've been such a good friend, I don't care that we have to say goodbye!" Laphi yelled. "I don't care that you're leaving! I care about the fact that you made me and my sister smile. You helped my sister hunt! You and I talked almost every day! Even Arthur has come to like you in his own way! We're almost family, at this point!"

He gave out a choked sob. "Don't… Don't say stuff like that…!" He breathed, the energy rushing out of his body in an instant.

Leo looked on sadly. "…Thank you, Laphi." He said sincerely.

"I treasured our time together as well." He promised. "If I wasn't who I am, I would've gladly lived the rest of my life here, in such a tranquil town, with such a pleasant family." He sighed. "I'm glad and honored to have been part of your lives."

The man shifted uncomfortably on the roof. "But… I'm a coward." He admitted.

"I'm terrified of saying goodbye, which is why I have to stop this now. I have to cut off the rotting limb, no matter how much I want to keep it." His eyes fell towards the fading sunset. "…Better to do it sooner than later."

"That's awful!" Laphi looked aghast. "How could you possibly compare us to a rotting limb?!"

Leo shook his head. "And yet, it's a perfect metaphor."

He glanced down at Velvet hanging up strips of meat to dry on racks in the garden. "A limb is something you want to keep, no matter what. It's something you instinctively need, as a human being."

He closed his eyes in pain. "But… it's something that I could never have. Fate has made it that way. It's better to cut it off, to save myself the pain before the rot grows and I have to suffer more. A necessary sacrifice."

Laphi was lost for words at this.

The two stayed like that, the soft wind dying down in the cool autumn breeze.

Leo sighed. "I've… grown to despise this pain. This pain of saying a permanent goodbye. I've grown to despise it with a burning hot passion."

He looked away. "I'd… I'd gladly be lonely forever if it meant never feeling this pain again." He breathed.

Laphi asked quietly, "…So you want to do something that's inevitable, in order to save yourself and others around you from pain?" He sucked in a soft breath.

"The… reasonable thing to do?" The boy whispered.

Leo glanced at Laphi in surprise. The boy seemed to be deeply thoughtful at that statement. Somehow, Leo could tell that Laphi wasn't talking about him anymore. Something about that statement rang alarm bells in his head.

He ignored them. It was for the best. It just wasn't his right to meddle where he didn't belong.

"…Yeah. Something like that." Leo whispered.

In the distant horizon, the sun went down with finality.

* * *

Crickets chirped. A cool night breeze blew and found its way into Leo's coat despite how warmly he'd bundled up.

Leo was still on the rooftop, looking pensively over the village he had reluctantly come to call home. Laphi had gone to bed long ago, tucked in by his sister and berated for staying up on the roof that long. Leo had stayed on the roof by himself, simply gazing out at the houses that made up the village he had come to love and ruminating alone.

He scoffed lightly into the cold air. To think there was a time in his life, years upon years ago, when he was young and thought that the only thing in life he wanted was to travel. Forward momentum. There was no greater feeling in life.

Oh, how he wanted hop back in time and punch himself in the teeth for thinking that. It was because of that line of thought that present day Leo was marooned in foreign universes, adrift in an endless ocean with next to no hope of getting back to shore.

Stewing in his regrets, the man sent another thought to the blasted device in his head. The virtual notification box showed up again.

9.93%.

Barely any improvement. As expected.

Leo sighed.

Just what the hell was it that made this world so different…?

He dismissed the box and stared at the vista that replaced it. He could, if he wanted to, stay in this village for the time it took to charge. It was amazingly peaceful, and all the villagers were used to his presence by now. It was safe from daemons, with the resident exorcist always nearby. He could go back down and tell Laphi that he'd changed his mind. He could stay and do everything he was doing now, for the rest of his time in Desolation.

But then the rot would spread, and the limb that needed to be amputated would elicit so, so much more pain.

He shook his head and reached into his coat pocket. Shuffling through the organized pockets of ammunition, Leo pulled out a hefty sack of gald. He tossed it gently and let it land on his palm. It was time to run away. Just like he always did.

A damned coward.

Footsteps drew the man's attention. He glanced behind himself in surprise. The resident exorcist Arthur climbed up to the roof and stood behind him, as steady and full of iron will as ever. His eyes burrowed into Leo's as he gestured meaningfully at the gald held in Leo's hand.

"You're leaving tomorrow." It was a statement, not a question.

Leo should've seen this coming. The man had the eyes of a hawk. In retrospect, this was probably why he decided to stay an extra day before leaving. He should've known it wasn't for Velvet's quiche.

Leo answered it anyways. "Yeah." He confirmed.

The brilliant light of the partially waxing moon continued to shine its silent vigil over the sea of autumn colored trees, hovering ominously above the two figures on top of the house.

Was the man going to get angry? He wondered. Was he going to accuse him of getting close to his family and then completely abandoning them? Leo was sure he'd be angry at anyone for doing that to his family in Arthur's position.

"…I wanted to thank you."

Leo blinked. Of all the things Leo had expected the enigma that was Artorius Collbrande to say, a thank-you was not one of them.

"Whatever for?" Leo was lost.

Arthur lifted his chin and observed the cloud-free night sky. "Don't think I haven't noticed just how much joy you've brought Laphicet these past few months." He brought his gaze down to the enigmatic stranger. "I had my doubts about you, and I still have some. Nevertheless, I thank you for bringing some joy into my sickly brother-in-law's life. Joy that he had lacked for so long."

Leo nodded somberly. "Him and me both. I needed the companionship just as much as he did." He cocked his head at the exorcist. "…Aren't you going to be mad at me for just leaving the two of them like this?"

Arthur shook his head. "No… It's good that you are leaving now." He muttered softly. The exorcist looked away.

"It would do you no good… to stay." He whispered.

Leo didn't know what to make of that statement. He decided to address the earlier part of his speech.

"…Don't forget about Velvet. She's brought so much joy for Laphi that I could never have dreamed of doing." He smiled fondly. "You've got a great sister-in-law, Arthur." He pursed his lips with envy. "You've got a great  _family_ , you know that, right?"

Arthur looked away. "Of course. I treasure them deeply."

After a moment of silence, Arthur prompted, "And you? Do you have a family?"

Leo looked out into the distance, seeing but not seeing. "I had one…" He sighed. "The pain of losing family… there is no greater hardship." He muttered sadly.

Because what else did you call his situation? He, in all rights, had lost his family. In more ways than one.

Arthur went rigid at his statement. "…Such loss… Begets untold despair."

Leo nodded softly. "That's the damn truth."

After a while of more silence and watching as the lights in the village slowly go out one by one, Artorius left the roof, without a word.

Yet… Leo still didn't feel alone. Not quite.

Trusting his instincts, he spoke aloud, "It's a nice night, isn't it?" He commented. "It's nights like these that really make you think back over everything, and question what you're doing in life, you know? Think about the mistakes, and the successes. Reflection can be your hardest trial sometimes, you know?"

He turned around to where he thought the presence was. But there was no one there.

He shook his head. "Huh. I guess I am going mad. Maybe that's not a such a bad thing…" Leo muttered as he finally stood up, stretching.

He stopped. The man took one last glance over the village before him.

He gave a bitter smile.

And then Leonex Davidson stole away from the warm, bright Crowe household like a thief in the cold, dark night.

* * *

Nothing but blue. Nothing else but water surrounding them for as far as the naked eye could see. A ship propelled forward through the endless ocean by the gusting winds. The ultimate embodiment of adventure. There would always be a part in Leo that lavished this, this feeling of  _movement_ , he reflected as he leaned on the port railing of the ship.

It had been a little less than a week since Leo had left Aball. In that time, he had travelled through the Morgana Woods and arrived in Taliesin, where he had found a merchant ship travelling from Eastgand to Midgand and managed to purchase passage on it.

The ship was now a few days out from Taliesin and would arrive at Port Zekson within a week or so. Once he arrived in Midgand… who knows? He would find something to do for the 3 to 4 years until his device charged fully. He would try his best to stay away from other people, as always. And then he'd leave this world for good.

His thoughts turned once more back to the people he had run from. When he had suddenly announced that he was leaving the next day after he had told Laphi, everyone had expressed varying degrees of shock and dismay, making the goodbye that much harder.

Drake had given him an absolute pounding of a bear hug, and had promised him free room and board, no matter what.

Niko had been… well, Niko.

Artorius had been absent that day, but Leo supposed that their exchange the night before had been more than enough of a farewell.

Velvet had been devastated and had had a few tears running down her cheeks. Eventually, after some efforts from both Leo and Laphi, she managed to calm down. The older sister had given Leo the tightest possible hug, telling him to stay the hell out of trouble, and that wherever he was going to, she hoped that he got there eventually. And also, to stay away from any pigs at all costs. She wouldn't be there to save his life.

Leo's grip on the railing tightened. That goodbye had hurt. So much.

Finally, he had said goodbye to Laphicet in his room, who had been bedridden once more as his fever had suddenly surged back with a vengeance. It was getting worse.

The little kid had had a sad smile on his face and had given Leo the upmost heartfelt thank-you for being a friend to him. Leo had told him to shut the hell up, and if anything, it was him who should've be thanking Laphi for making his stay in Aball intelligent, much to the offense taken by Velvet. A fond hug had been exchanged.

"Thank you, Leo. For everything." Laphi had sounded disturbingly final when he had whispered that into Leo's ear during the hug.

Maybe he had sensed how Leo would never see any of them ever again. How he would never, ever return to the small frontier village of Aball.

Leo sighed in depression, running a hand through his hair. It was for the best that he was running away, he reminded himself. He glanced over in detachment, watching the foreign crew go about their regular duties maintaining the condition of the vessel.

He was alone again. It was for the best.

Good things never lasted, he supposed.

With a shake of his head, the wanderer turned around and headed back down into his cabin, planning to find something in his notebook to read in an effort to distract himself from the depression nipping at his heels.

That night, the heavens turned scarlet.

And the earth beneath it followed.

**End of Part 0 – The Tranquil Town.**


	7. C05 - Thunder

**Chapter 5 – Thunder.**

BOOM!

The thunder from a distant lighting strike erupted throughout the land, pounding deafeningly over the constant torrent of the rain on dirt. The land, plains as far as the eye could see, had been transformed into a sea of muck and grime.

Nothing in the world felt clean anymore.

Leo's left boot splashed heavily into a deceptively shallow puddle as he trudged along, his body stumbling as the expected resistance from the ground was farther than expected. Recovering, the man simply lifted his foot out of the slop and continued onward. He didn't react to the dirty grimy water now permeating every fiber of his sock.

He hasn't reacted to much lately.

Leo raised his head and squinted through the torrential rainfall in a vague attempt at observing his surroundings. He'd been wandering for hours, losing all sense of time and direction in the process. All he could do was keep going, following an empty path with no destination in mind.

Now, it seemed like he was in luck. In the distance, through the countless beads of liquid on his glasses, Leo discerned shades of brown; hints of a town in the plains. Despite himself, his pace quickened. A part of him felt happy and hopeful that there would be safety and warmth offered in the town.

But another part of him thought of Laphi. Of Velvet. Of bodies in the muck that would never be safe or warm again.

He shook his head violently and forced himself to trudge forward, trying in vain to wipe the water from his glasses to observe the town better. When he did get close enough to see the actual state of the town, his hope faded just as quickly as it had appeared.

Splintered wood. Hanging doors. Decomposing skeletons.

Another town ravaged by the Daemonblight. His fists clenched.

Suddenly, Leo saw a different town. A similar town in make and design.

He saw a grandfather clock sitting in an inn stained with the blood of a whole family, still ticking diligently away for the convenience of the inn's nonexistent guests. He saw a pig pen with smashed fences and pools of butchered meat, both animal and human. He saw dozens of unmarked shallow graves, dug in a hurry by the inhabitants of a neighboring village in a paltry attempt at respect for the dead. He saw the Crowe household; its beds empty and its hearth unlit.

He saw Aball.

His thoughts turned back to that night; that cursed Scarlet Night. For Leo, that night had come and gone, with none on the ship the wiser. When they had arrived at Port Zekson 5 days later, they had come to realize that the world they lived in was no longer recognizable.

Malakhim. Spirits with unbelievable power, that could be tethered to an exorcist in order to unleash powerful artes to kill daemons. He'd known of the validity of Arthur's own skills, whom had saved his life when they'd first met. But to think that a single night would bring about such drastic changes to the world…

And to his.

Wandering aimlessly around Port Zekson, trying to wrap his head around the new world, one day he'd heard of a town that he'd hoped he'd never hear about again.

"What?! Are you sure?!"

The raised voice in the empty bar drew Leo's attention, himself in the middle of a conversation with a merchant.

The husband of the woman who had raised her voice nodded her head soberly. "I heard it all from that trader Amy. Right before she left Taliesin, she'd heard the horrifying news."

Leo's breath stopped. The whole world shut down.

_No… Please don't say…_

The husband shook his head sadly. "The whole town. Wiped from the map.  _Everyone_  killed by daemons in a single bloody night. Men, women, children, livestock. There wasn't a living soul to be found the next day when a horrified trader from Taliesin found the town in the morning."

Leo couldn't hear anything. He couldn't think. There was no way. No. There was no way. Fate could not be this cruel to him.

Had they all died? Laphi? Velvet? Arthur? Everyone he had gotten to know and regrettably love?

_Everyone I ran away from?_

He leapt up from his chair, startling the irrelevant merchant whom he had been talking to and immediately ran up to the conversing couple.

He put his hands on their table and leaned in desperately. "Are you sure?!" He pleaded anxiously.

The man was severely taken aback. "What? About Aball?"

Leo nodded sharply. He sucked in a shaky breath and contained himself. His entire body slouched.

Acceptance had begun to ring throughout his body.

He breathed, in a voice that was barely even a whisper, a question.

"…Everyone?"

Comprehension dawned in the husband's face. His face scrunched in pity. The wife had a similar feeling. This man was hearing about the death of loved ones.

The husband's voice was sober.

"I'm afraid so."

Leo sucked in a sharp breath as the emotions exploded inside of him. His fists clenched, his nails digging deep into his palms.

The husband's pity was clear. "Are you… alright man?" He made to get up to help the stranger, but the man shook his head in response.

"No… I'm not." He lifted his eyes to meet the other man's.

"I have to go see for myself." Leo breathed.

The husband mutely nodded, respectful to the stranger's loss. He muttered, "I wish you all the luck in the world."

Leo nodded, and collected himself. "Thanks." He let out.

The husband nodded wordlessly in response.

With that, Leo marched straight out of the bar, fueled by a desperate, desperate hope that the rumor he had just heard was not true.

He just needed to  _see_.

Everything else was forgotten.

It had taken a heart-wrenchingly long month to wait around and find passage on a ship that was headed to Taliesin from Port Zekson. The whirling chaos of the population and the influx of the new emergent exorcists and their attempts at order had meant that the world had little need for trading at that moment. Eventually, he had booked passage on a merchant vessel that was to bring food from Taliesin back to Port Zekson.

He had run up the hundreds of flights of stairs in Taliesin the moment his ship had docked. He had trotted determinedly through daemon-infested Morgana Woods despite the inhabitants of Taliesin telling him not to, and that Aball was already empty.

He had to see. No matter what, he had to see.

They had been the first collection of people he had come to love in a long time. He'd be damned if he would take the world's word for it that they had all died a few nights after he had run away from them.

When he had finally seen the familiar sight of brown homesteads in the sea of orange trees, he had seen what he had expected.

Too many people had said the same tale.

Too many people had told him of the horrors that awaited him there.

The main gate had been utterly and completely smashed. Leo stepped over the wooden gates, numb. The villagers had always been worried about how fragile the walls really were.

He walked into the village proper.

In any other context, the ambient rustling of the trees and the chirping of the birds would have been considered tranquil, and peaceful.

Here, it was haunting.

There was nobody here. Nobody.

Everywhere he looked, he saw the effects of the cursed daemons on the poor village. Claw marks, paint stained red with blood. And when he took the hike to the Shrine of Tranquility, he found all of them.

Laphi. Velvet. Arthur. Niko. Drake. All the villagers. Buried in shallow graves.

Unmarked and forgotten.

BOOM!

The thunder started Leo and he pulled himself out of his memories and back into the searing cold of the present. He shivered as he remembered his numb toes and fingers and found himself wandering aimlessly amongst the empty ruins of the village in the Aldina Plains.

He sought shelter inside a random wooden house with a partially collapsed roof, water trickling in loudly through the hole in the roof. He shuddered as he sneezed, tearing off his sloppy wet coat and gently laying his gun on the somewhat dry floor next to it. He numbly attempted to light the somewhat-dry firewood still present in the hearth with some tinder in his pouch.

Once again, his mind drifted back to that day he had arrived back in Aball.

After he had confirmed what he'd already known, after all that effort, the only thing he had wanted to do had been to get as far away from the ruins of Aball as possible. He couldn't've stayed there another night.

He had taken the same ship he had come in on from Taliesin and had arrived back at Port Zekson within a week. From there he had simply bought a few supplies, chose a cardinal direction, and left through that gate.

He had wandered. Utterly lost. And here he was now, still wandering, days later.

The fire refused to light. Leo cursed it and cursed himself.

He hated himself. He hated himself for running away from them all, and he hated how a part of him, an ugly, ugly part of him, felt relieved. That he DID run away. That he hadn't gotten closer to the people who would eventually leave his life anyways, daemons or no daemons.

He was a man of utter contradiction. And he hated himself for that.

The fire began to gain ground on the wet firewood. He blew as hard as he could, sighing in relief when he felt the blood return to his hands as he warmed them over the fire.

The deaths of everyone he had come to reluctantly love had broken him, properly. And he didn't know how to fix himself. Even his wife, his lovely wife, felt so hopelessly far away that he found that he couldn't even bring himself to care anymore. He didn't care about any of it.

Damn it all, these cruel, cruel worlds.

Suddenly, a vicious howl erupted nearby. Leo froze in terror. It was close.  _Extremely_  close.

And it was the howl of a daemon.

Leo cursed as he roughly stomped out the fire and pulled his ragged coat back on, clicking the safety off on his rifle.

"Fucking daemons." He let out through gritted teeth. How he hated those monsters. Oh, how he hated them.

Another howl rent the air.

Leo swore. He should've known that the daemons that had destroyed this town wouldn't've gone far in the rain. And now they knew he was there.

He checked his corners of the doorway of the destroyed house. He cursed as he glimpsed the flash of a hulking figure rushing from alleyway to alleyway in the distance. He was fucked. Oh, he was so fucked.

He took one last breath, one likely to be one of his last, and kicked off from the wall, sprinting madly for the open plains.

Rain blinded his vision. He gave up on trying to see through his glasses and just concentrated on keeping his two legs pumping through the mud.

A chorus of howls followed him.

This time, there was no Arthur to come and help him now. He looked over his shoulder and groaned in dismay. A whole horde of werewolf daemons were closing in on the helpless human prey that had so unwittingly wandered into their midst.

He looked forward. There was no way he'd hide from them. He could try to run, though. There was always the slightest chance that he could manage to escape them.

… _Screw it._

He skidded to a stop in front of the entrance to the town.

He was fed up with all of it.

This world, the travelling of worlds. Making friends, losing friends. Being alone. Being with others only to feel the cruel and sharp blade of fate that never ceased its attempts to make him suffer. The hopelessness of it all; the very likely possibility that he would never find his way home to his wife and his unborn son. His family.

That he'd die here, in some obscure place so very, very far away from home. That he was the cause of his isolation in the first place; that he was the one who had tried to run away from his life at Earth with his loathsome naiveté.

That he was a coward. That he had run away from the only people whom he had ended up caring about in Aball; that they should die horrific deaths while he, the bastard who hadn't even found it in himself to tell them where he came from, should live.

"DAMN IT ALL!" He let out a furious roar as he opened fire on the daemons.

CRACK!

CHINK-CHINK!

CRACK!

CHINK-CHINK!

CRACK!

CHINK-CHINK!

CRACK!

The daemon horde grounded to a halt, startled by the fierce man's control over the thunder. They encircled him warily instead, some taking hits from the rifle and recoiling in surprise, whining in pain.

Leo deftly reached into his coat pocket and pulled out four fresh rounds. He slotted in three rounds neatly, and cocked the rifle, ejecting the spent shell and chambering a new round, and then loaded a last round to top off the round capacity. He stood his ground as he glared at the circling daemons.

"Well?!" He spat into the rain. "Come on then you bastards! Come kill me!" He raised his rifle and fired.

CRACK!

A daemon yelped as a round landed straight in its right eye, recoiling in pain.

CHINK-CHINK!

The spent shell fell onto the ground, another drop of rain in the downpour.

Leo seethed. "I hate you daemons, you know that?!" He loaded another bullet into the feed. "Of all the many things I've come across in my travels, you all are the absolutely WORST!"

CRACK!

Another daemon yelped as a bullet dug into its fur.

CHINK-CHINK!

"You bastards were human once! And yet you all happily slaughter all that is good in this world!"

CRACK!

Another daemon winced as a bullet grazed its snout.

CHINK-CHINK!

Leo fumbled some more bullets into the feed of his rifle.

"You killed Laphi! You killed Velvet! You killed everyone that I had come to know in this world in one fell swoop!" He cried.

Tears mixed with the rain on his cheeks. "And now you're going to kill me now! WELL GO ON THEN! WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?! I'VE GOT NOTHING LEFT!"

CRACK!

CHINK-CHINK!

CRACK!

CHINK-CHINK!

Click.

Leo's blood ran cold as he heard a click instead of a bang. His rifle had jammed from his reckless abuse. The growling grew in volume as the daemons all collectively sensed his fear.

His rifle fell limp in his grip. He supposed it was a fitting end for a coward like him. Leo sighed and closed his eyes with finality.

The daemons prepared to pounce.

And then Leo was hit with a strong sense of déjà vu.

Ice spikes materialized out of nowhere and hailed down on the daemons in a much deadlier rain. Each spike tore viciously through a daemon, stabbing right through their chests.

The daemons all recoiled upon the assault and forgot about Leo, whirling around instead to face a woman wearing blue as she leapt into their midst with a spear in hand, cleaving and beheading with each precise swing.

Three daemons beset upon the woman at once, claws extended. The woman yelled out and stomped the butt of her spear into the mud. Instantly, a blast of brilliant yellow light flashed out from the tip of her spear. A burst of vicious flowing energy zapped holes straight through all three daemons.

The woman spun her spear in a fluid follow-up, creating a glowing green barrier around her form and deflecting the now limp daemon bodies off into the mud. She cried a battle cry as she leapt forward and cut a path through the other daemons, swinging her spear in brilliant fashion.

Blood mixed with rainwater as she worked.

Leo watched in envy.

With such power, he could've saved this town. He could've saved Aball. He glared at the animals converging on the strong exorcist in fury. How he loathed the beasts.

With renewed determination, Leo cocked his rifle, prying the hot shell from the chamber and returning the lever to its nominal position. He slotted in fresh rounds and then raised the weapon in firing position. He could still help. He could try.

He wasn't dead yet.

Leo wiped his glasses with the back of his wet left hand, squinting. The exorcist was getting overwhelmed, that much was clear. She was dodging and fighting two larger werewolves in particular whom were harder to kill than the smaller ones.

He instantly noticed a smaller daemon preparing to pounce on the exorcist from behind. He lined up his rifle sights and judged the velocity of the beast in a heartbeat.

CRACK!

The bullet caught the daemon right as it was about to pounce and quickly drew the exorcist's attention. Eyes wide in surprise, the woman called something out into the air. In response, a malak; a real fucking malak, appeared and summoned a burst of fire to scorch the offending daemon.

Leo watched the strange otherworldly creature in awe.

The woman caught the man's eye and gave a quick and appreciative nod, glancing briefly at the stranger's foreign weapon. Leo nodded resolutely back and cocked his rifle, switching his attention to the surrounding daemons who had re-registered him as a threat. The woman herself re-engaged the larger daemons with fervor.

_Nothing to it._

Leo sprinted through the chaos towards the exorcist.

"Hey!" He called through the downpour and thunder, cocking his rifle. "Two on your left!" He raised his weapon.

CRACK!

The exorcist swiftly turned and beheaded the two distracted daemons in a firm sweep.

"Thank you!" She yelled back through the rain, twirling around and stabbing one of the two larger daemons fatally through the neck.

Leo pushed and pulled the lever on his rifle and spun around with alarm at the heavy sound of incoming claws. He dove to the side.

CRACK!

He fired point-blank while diving, the charging daemon missing him by inches. Before the stunned daemon even hit the ground, it was impaled by a spike of pure energy and died before landing. Leo rolled to his feet into a battle-crouch while cocking his rifle pointed directly in his savior's direction.

CRACK!

The latter of the two larger daemons roared in pain as a round dug through its neck, giving the lady the perfect opportunity to leap impressively into the air and drive her spear from it skull to its crotch.

The huge daemon was then relegated to a bloody mess on the floor of the plains.

Leo panted as the adrenaline flowed through his veins, reloading his rifle and chambering it. He took a good long look at the situation. There were just too many daemons circling the two. There was no end in sight. Yet, at the same time, the man felt exhilarated.

He was doing something. Finally.

Leo gasped for breath. "Lady!" He yelled. "This isn't working! You got a plan B?!"

The exorcist lady came to a similar conclusion and nodded sharply. With one last slash driving off a charging werewolf, she huffed and yelled, "Enough of this! Bienfu! Do it!"

The Malak obeyed with a yell, its eyes glowing brightly in the mist.

The sky turned dark as a gigantic brilliant azure arcane circle appeared, centered directly above the exorcist. The world rumbled ominously with power that had nothing to do with the thunder. The hairs on the back of Leo's neck stood up in alarm as copious amounts of electricity began to gather in the air.

The humming grew louder and louder, peaking at an almost unbearable pitch.

"You there! Get down!"

Leo didn't need to be told twice. He dove to the ground, hands on his ears.

And then the world became nothing but white.

CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!

Howls of pain rose all at once. The ground shook with every strike of terrifying magnitude.

_Such power!_

Leo thought with awe, clutching his ears as the rain of death occurred all around him.

This was the power of an exorcist!

When the last daemon fell, the arcane circle faded from the sky, as if it was never there to begin with. The rain could once again be heard in the calm after the storm, the distant rumbling of thunder utterly paltry in comparison to the raging arte the exorcist had just performed.

Leo stood up shakily, woodenly fumbling with his weapon and gazing around at his surroundings.

The ruins of the entire village had been even further demolished. All the daemons had been obliterated in the surrounding area. Everywhere he looked there were craters of mud where pure power had struck.

He caught his breath and looked over at the exorcist in question.

"Hey!" He yelled as he saw the limp figure tumble into the mud, utterly spent.

He took one last glance around, examining the effects of the exorcist's power. A new determination formed in his mind. An idea for what he could do in the years he had left in this desolate world.

He stumbled forward on shaky legs and ran towards the unconscious woman.

The rain continued to patter on the wooden ruins, the forces of nature steadily returning the town back to nothing.

* * *

Eleanor Hume groaned as she resurfaced back into consciousness, blinking blearily as she took in her surroundings. She was surprised to find herself rather dry, as opposed to wet and mud-encrusted as she had expected from her last conscious memory.

She was presently sheltered from the storm in a shallow cave on a mountainside, overlooking the flooded plains below. A warm fire blazed merrily a few feet away from her, warming her bones and drying the clothes on her back. The smoke funneled out into the open air through the mouth of the cave and was captured by the harsh winds of the thunderstorm still raging outside.

She shivered at the mere sight of the horrid weather outside, unbelievably grateful to be out of it.

"Bienfu? Are you there?" She called out, despite seemingly being alone in the cave.

She felt a meek response within herself, reassuring her. Relieved that her only malak was in good enough shape and would soon be ready for combat again, Eleanor released a pent-up sigh, glad that the entire ordeal was done and over with.

Suddenly, Eleanor heard footsteps outside the cave; sounds that did not rhyme with the sounds of the storm.

Fully alert and combat-ready, her eyes instantly found her spear by her side and she stood, silently grabbing her weapon and readying herself. She winced at the aches in her body but pushed resolutely through the pain. The exorcist got into position at the mouth of the cave, spear at the ready.

She did not come this far to be killed by a daemon in her sleep.

The heavy footsteps grew closer and closer. She readied herself, every muscle tense in trained coordination acquired through countless hours of training. It was just another daemon to finish off.

The monster turned the corner. Eleanor didn't hesitate.

"OH GOD!" Exclaimed a flustered and terrified Leo who dodged the spear's point by a millimeter.

He was met with an equally terrified scream uttered by the exorcist he had helped who dropped her spear as if scalded by it. Drenched apples rained onto the rocky ground below, dropped by Leo in his panic.

Both parties gasped for breath, staring widely at each other in panic.

Leo burst out, "What the hell lady?!" He sucked in a sharp breath. "Is this how people repay each other nowadays for help?!" He glared angrily at her.

The woman was rightfully mortified by her actions.

She had nearly killed him!

She let out in a squeaky and high-pitched apology, "Oh my gods! I'm so sorry! I thought you were another daemon! I-!" She caught her breath. "I apologize, deeply. I-I've been so used to travelling alone that my mind just automatically assumed you were an e-enemy."

Leo eyes were wide in disbelief. "You've got to be kidding me!" He yelled. "How the hell did you think you wound up here in this cave, with this fire?!" He gestured roughly at his handiwork, which he had spent hours laboring to find dry enough firewood to craft. "You nearly beheaded me!" He shouted indignantly.

The exorcist's fists tightened. "I'm… truly sorry." Her eyes scrunched. "I… I haven't been doing this long…" Leo was started to see tears in her eyes. She sniffled. "I'm so utterly sorry… if you hadn't dodged… I would've…" She choked, overcome by emotion.

Leo sighed. Quite the exorcist he'd found.

He walked up tentatively to the sniffling exorcist and gave her a tentative pat on the shoulder. She looked up with wet eyes. Leo gave as warm of a smile as he could muster.

"It's alright. No harm done." He reassured. "You saved me in the first place back at that village, so I guess I can consider us even." He let go of her shoulder and held up an apple as a peace offering, washed by the rain.

"The name's Leonex Davidson, by the way." He gave her a reassuring smile.

The exorcist gave a wet smile and happily accepted the apple. "Eleanor Hume." She sniffed. "Nice to meet you, Leonex. I'm sorry, again."

Leo shrugged. "Nothing bad came out of it in the end. Come on. Your clothes are still wet. Oh, and call me Leo, please."

Their awkward encounter mostly smoothed over, the two travelers settled down by the fire. Leo gathered up the rest of the fallen apples, placed them up by the fire and began to eat. Eleanor did the same.

Leo examined the exorcist across from him as he chewed. "So," he began conversationally. "What's an exorcist like you doing out here?"

Eleanor nodded and seemed to straighten with the reminder of her position of authority. "I'm an exorcist orderly of the Abbey."

Leo nodded. He'd heard of the newly-founded organization here and there, although he didn't know too much about it.

"I was sent to this town to investigate rumors of increased masses of daemons. It seemed…" Her fists and eyes clenched in agitation. "It seemed though, that I was too late to stop the massacre. When I had arrived, the village was already desecrated. I was in the area, looking for survivors, when I heard your weapon." She nodded at his gun, leaning against the cave wall. Leo gave a nod.

Eleanor continued, "At first, I thought you were a survivor from the village… but that's clearly not the case." She looked at Leo, prompting him.

He nodded. "Yeah, I'm not from around here. I was… wandering. Still am." He replied vaguely.

Eleanor's expression turned deeply serious. "I saw you fighting off that horde of daemons on your own." She studied the man across from her carefully. "Why didn't you try to run? You stood no chance against them all by yourself."

Leo looked through the mouth of the cave and towards the distant rain-blanketed plains.

"I was… reminded of another town." He murmured softly. "Just like this one. The people who were killed were… important to me."

Eleanor observed Leo soberly.

It made sense to her.

She gave a slow, empathetic nod. "It… reminds me of my hometown as well." Leo glanced at her with surprise. She elaborated, "My hometown was destroyed by daemons. In the attack… my mother was killed."

Leo looked on with sympathy. "The wounds stay fresh for a while, huh?" He muttered.

Eleanor could only nod in agreement.

The rain continued to fall outside, at odds with the crackling of the fire inside the warm cave.

"So… Eleanor?" Leo broke the silence. The woman nodded. He continued, "Can you tell me more about the Abbey? I haven't heard much about it; only bits and pieces from rumors here and there."

Eleanor nodded seriously. It was a common question.

"The Abbey is a collection of exorcists, with the sole goal of protecting humanity from the scourge of daemonblight." Her spine stiffened, while her voice grew steady. Leo blinked in surprise. Dedicated and self-righteous.

She continued, "Exorcists like me have the innate ability to control the newly revealed Malakhim. With their powers, exorcists such as I have the ability to defeat daemons and help bring peace to this world."

Leo nodded slowly. "That's extremely noble of you all." He commented neutrally.

Eleanor shook her head. "It isn't noble. It's merely the reasonable thing to do."

She elaborated, "Without the daemons, the world will flourish. Exorcists are the means to an end for mankind; the Abbey is ready to do whatever it takes to make sure humanity wins this fight."

The exorcist turned her determined gaze outwards, her jaw set in determination. "It's why I signed up immediately once I realized that I had potential to control malakhim. I'll do whatever it takes to make this world a better place."

Leo studied her honest expression closely.

She was… amazingly naïve.

His own preconceptions of the Abbey held him back from such undying faith. He was deeply suspicious of any sort of large organization declaring itself the savior of the entire world. His own experiences throughout the worlds have taught him that.

However, he wasn't about to rain on her parade just yet.

Leo commented neutrally, "Quite the mission statement. How many exorcists are there now in the Abbey?"

Eleanor turned her gaze back to him. "There are around 100 exorcists so far in the ranks, but more are coming and joining every day. Everyone is being trained extremely quickly, and things are progressing extremely fast." She looked incredibly proud. "Lord Artorius is such a diligent leader."

_Wait. What?_

Leo's eyes widened in shock.

"Artorius?! Artorius Collbrande?!" He yelled.

Eleanor was taken aback at the man's intensity. "Y-yes, Artorius Collbrande is the leader of the Abbey. He founded the Abbey a few months ago, right after the Advent."

Leo gaped. "I… I thought he died…" He muttered to himself.

"If he's alive… then… Velvet… Laphi…"

His mind raced with the possibilities. Something in himself just could not let go of those names he held so dear to himself.

"…Eleanor?" He asked. "Can I ask you a question?"

Eleanor nodded openly in response.

Leo hesitated, considering his words. There was a cause for him to do so, and there was a reason for him to do so.

_So why the hell not._

"…How does one become an exorcist?"

Thunder roared in the distance.

* * *

**Author's Note:** Hello there! Hope you're enjoying the story. With the release of this chapter, we are officially transitioning into regular weekly updates. (Each Monday and Friday).

A clarification for these updates; As many of my chapters vary in word count, I promise to release at least 5,000 words each update. This may mean more than one chapter is released per update. For reference, this chapter was 5,273 words. Thanks to everyone who's been reading up 'till this point. If you have time, please send a review my way! Lemme know how I'm doing, and if there are any problems with my work that I should consider addressing for future chapters.

...And that's all I have to say!


	8. C06 - The Abbey

**Chapter 6 – The Abbey.**

Lord Artorius Collbrande, hero of the people and the grand ruler of the Abbey itself, looked up from his desk at the sound of a knock on the door.

"Enter." He called.

Ever vigilant, two of the Lord's vast reserve of malaks turned dutifully towards the potential threat as the door to the man's office slid open on well-oiled hinges. Exorcist Teresa Linares entered the room, closing the door gently behind her. "Lord Artorius." She greeted respectfully.

Artorius nodded. "Teresa." He responded. "What is it?"

Teresa seemed to search for words for a few seconds before answering. "Lord Artorius," she began hesitantly, "I would not normally seek to trouble you with such trivial matters… however my pupil has found a man who seeks to learn the ways of an exorcist. The man shows a decent amount of resonance and could prove to be of use to the Abbey."

Artorius raised an eyebrow. "Then why has this man not been formally tested in accordance with standard Abbey procedure?" He asked pointedly.

Teresa hesitated. "It seems… that the man does not wish to become fully affiliated with the Abbey." She continued, "According to my student, the man is a traveler, and refuses to become a soldier for an organization that would hinder his travels in any way. He simply wishes to defeat daemons in the interest of bettering the world, no matter where he goes."

Teresa seemed profoundly embarrassed to even be bringing the matter up to her lord. She fiddled with her hands in front of her dress. "I'm fully aware of how absurd the proposition is." She openly admitted.

"However, Eleanor was willing to risk her own station and place in the Abbey for the man's request to be personally considered by you, sir."

Artorius wasn't impressed. "Denied." He stated harshly. "Such a line of thinking is selfish. Training such a man would be an inefficient waste of time, as opposed to training personnel willing to follow the proper reasoning of superiors." He shook his head. "The Abbey could not possibly work with such a man. The world will not benefit from rogues running around with exorcist artes." He finished firmly.

Teresa nodded quickly in agreement, responding staunchly, "I figured as much. I promise you, Eleanor will receive harsh punishment for such impudence. Thank you for your time." She gave a curtsy and turned to leave as quickly as possible.

"…Teresa?"

The exorcist orderly stopped and turned around curiously. "Yes, my Lord?"

Artorius looked deeply thoughtful. "…Might I inquire as to what this man's name is?"

Teresa found the request strange, but obliged her lord nevertheless. "Eleanor gave the name of Leonex Davidson for the man, sir."

Despite the reserved façade of her lord, Teresa could tell that the man was affected by that particular name. Curious. She could see the cogs turning in that ever-analytical mind of his. Evidently reaching a decision, Lord Artorius met her eyes.

"Give the man what he wants." He told her.

"What?" Teresa's eyes widened in shock. How did the man's name change everything he had just said? "But-!"

Artorius held up a hand. "I know the man." He stated firmly. "Teaching him the ways of the Abbey could only benefit the well-being of this world."

"There is reason behind this act, I assure you." He promised.

Teresa nodded hesitantly, albeit still curious. With another curtsy, she left the room. The door shut with a firm click.

Lord Artorius reflected on a name he hadn't contemplated in months. He let out under his breath, "I wonder…" He trailed off.

He then purged the matter from his head and returned to his paperwork. There still remained much to be done in order to protect mankind. The result of his gamble he had just played would show itself in due time.

One of the malaks standing by Artorius stared at the door in contemplation long after Teresa had left.

"Leo…" Seres breathed softly. Her mask revealed no emotions to the outside world.

* * *

Knock, Knock.

…

Knock, Knock, Knock.

…

Knock! Knock! Knock!

…

"You leave me no choice…"

The door to the room opened with a click, creaking open ominously on squeaky hinges. Light from the hallway outside spilled into the darkened room, casting an ominous shadow in the doorway. A peaceful form slept away on a bed in the corner, blissfully unaware of the calamity to come. The shadow approached closer and closer to the figure. It fell over the sleeping figure's face.

A deep breath was drawn.

"WAKE UP BIIIEEEEEEEEEENNNNNN!"

"AAAAAHHHHH!"

A responding scream resounded throughout the inn, followed by a painful-sounding slap of flesh on flesh that rang sharply off the walls.

"CHRIST ABOVE, BIENFU!" Leo screamed, properly disturbed from his beauty rest. His hair was a complete bird's nest and his eyes were wide in shock as he leapt upwards from his bed in alarm.

"Bieeeeeeeennnn…" Came a dizzy groan from the defeated malak on the other side of the room leaning against a wall with a bright pink mark on his cheek, courtesy of Leo's self-defense mechanism.

"Ugh." Leo grumbled as he ran a hand through his hair. "There are better ways of waking me up you know…" Now regrettably wide awake, the man stood up from his warm bed with a yawn and began the process of pulling on his packed clothes.

He pulled open the shades of the room, letting the brilliant daylight stream into the room, much to the agony of the suffering malak across the room. He absently observed the busy crowds outside the window. "I'm assuming Eleanor needs me for something?" He prompted, turning around and looking inquisitively at the still groaning malak. "…Bienfu?" He prompted again, reaching under his bed and grabbing his gun, giving it a quick check to make sure it was loaded and on safety.

He walked up and kneeled before the prone malak, giving him a mild poke with the butt of his rifle. "Hey, come on! I didn't hit you that hard!"

Bienfu sharpened up and swatted at Leo's rifle. "You're so mean, Leo!" He hissed as he gingerly touched the spot where Leo's hand had swiped him. "Who sleeps in so late in the morning anyway?!"

Leo hmphed and stood up, shouldering his rifle. "I do. And you should've known better than to just scream at me to wake me up!" He scolded. "It was justified self-defense."

"Bien… the things I do for Madam Eleanor." Bienfu moaned in self-pity.

Leo's eye twitched. He picked up the malak by the scruff of his neck heedless of his protests. "Come on then, out with it! Why'd you interrupt my precious sleep?!"

Bienfu managed to wrangle himself out of Leo's grasp. "Bien! Quit it!" He collected himself in the air, straightening his ridiculous hat. He cleared his throat and posed in the air, declaring, "I'll have you know Madam Eleanor has ordered me to come and get you. She'll be waiting at the entrance to the Abbey headquarters in a few minutes. She's got news!"

Leo gave a sigh of relief. "Finally!" He breathed. "I've been wasting away in this inn for too damn long! Come on, then!" He beckoned. The malak trailed after him as he opened the door and left his room, locking it behind him with a key.

Bienfu eyed Leo disdainfully. "You know Leo, you could be a bit more appreciative of Madam Eleanor's efforts. She put her own career on the line for you, you know!" His eyes glistened in awe. "She's so noble! It's incredible!"

Leo winced at the squealing tone of the malak. He responded as he walked down the hallway, "Trust me, Bienfu, I'm more grateful than you could ever imagine. For one, when you two saved my life two weeks ago, I had no idea what I was doing with myself." His eyes were soft.

"You two gave me purpose." He breathed gratefully. "Seriously. I'm grateful."

"…Was that purpose to sleep in after noon?" Bienfu muttered sourly.

"Hey! That's… not entirely accurate!"

Bienfu gave him a deadpan stare, pointing wordlessly to the man's nest of hair.

Self-consciously attempting to tame the mess on his head, Leo muttered, "What I meant was the whole trying-to-get-into-the-Abbey thing, dipstick." He glanced wryly at the malak. "You know, I haven't seen you this hissy since you accidentally fell into Galles Lake thanks to that daemon we ran into." He grinned. "And that wasn't even my fault!"

Bienfu moaned. "Don't remind me, Bien. That was just awful! So very bad-bad!" The malak shuddered. "The water was so cold! And Madam Eleanor didn't have anything to warm me up!"

Leo's grin widened. "You know, for a malak, you can be particularly temperamental at times."

"I am not!"

The man trotted down the stairs into the spacious lobby of the inn. He waved to the innkeeper behind the front desk. "Hey Dana! Do you happen to have anything for killing pests? I've got this really annoying fly buzzing around me and he just doesn't want to leave."

Dana, clearly used to the antics of these two regulars, shook her head in amusement and replied, "'Fraid not, Leo. I'm afraid you're just going to have to try and smack it to death."

Leo grinned. "Already tried. The thing's remarkably resilient." He mock swatted at Bienfu.

"Bien! Why does everyone hate me!?" The malak cried with tears in his eyes as he dodged the attack.

The Dana and Leo laughed together at the Malak's expense. The man gave the innkeeper a wave and turned around, opening the door to the establishment. He squinted through the jarringly bright daytime light and stepped out into the overwhelming sensory sensation that was the capital city of Loegres.

The Jewel of Midgand.

The capital was always busy as hell. People running here and there, tourists arriving and chatting excitedly amongst themselves, residents going about their errands. Shopkeepers hawking their wares incessantly to anyone who would listen. Street performers playing string instruments all spaced out as closely as possible without interrupting other performers. It was never quiet around here, Leo reflected as he headed out and joined the crowds, making his way on the familiar route to the Abbey headquarters.

After Eleanor had saved him and given him purpose, Leo had gone with her and her malak called Bienfu to the capital. He had wanted to  _do_ something, just like Eleanor. He had years left in this world, and if there was one thing that tickled his fancy, it was making sure there were as little daemons in this world as he could kill.

And yet, he refused, utterly refused to enlist in the Abbey.

He knew with experience the dangers of associating with organizations touting themselves as the saviors of the world. There was no way he would have freedom tethered to such an organization; that was just against his own nature. He had come up with a possible way to learn the artes without joining.

By getting his name to a certain man. Lord Artorius. The Savior.

Leo contemplated the man. Lord Artorius. A person couldn't go two steps in Loegres without hearing the man's name. Everyone was up in fervor about the man. He was the cause of the Advent, they'd say. He was the one who gave the heroic exorcists their powers. He was going to save the world.

The questions boiled around in the soup of his mind.

What happened? Why was Arthur alive? Leo knew that the man would have gladly given his life in order to protect the members of his village. Was he simply not present at the village when it had happened? Or did he run away? Did he save Velvet and Laphi? Despite himself, Leo's own emotions were getting the best of him.

He just needed closure. He simply needed to know what had happened to those faces that he'd grown to know.

However, he first needed some way to get his name to Arthur. He was sure that the man would consider his request to let him join. Or at least, the man that he knew months before. Months before, Leo would have never dreamed that the exorcist of a lonely town in the frontier of Eastgand would become a powerful head of an organization bent on saving the entire damn world. Although to be fair, months before, Leo would have never dreamed about a lot of the things that had come to pass.

He'd been so vulnerable. Broken. Depressed. So much so that he had been okay with dying, leaving so much undone that day on the Aldina plains.

Eleanor had saved him. Her naïve ideals, while inviting plenty of sarcasm, had been deeply moving to Leo. With difficulty, he had moved on thanks to her. He no longer shambled around with dead eyes; he moved with purpose. He wanted the scourge of daemons to be stopped. If it was by his own hands, so be it. Galvanized to the cause of the Abbey, but still reluctant to enlist in such a militaristic organization, he had brought up all of this to his newest friend. His drive to kill daemons, his reluctance to affiliate with the Abbey, his familiarity with the Lord.

Eleanor had been extremely empathetic to the man's hatred of daemons. Amazingly, the woman had personally taken it upon herself to make sure that this man would find his way into the Abbey's ways. Leo had been blindsided by just how much dedication and trust the woman had in him already. She was so teeth-grindingly naïve, but that was also her most endearing trait. Profoundly grateful at this woman who had gotten his life back on track, Leo had accepted her offer.

And thus, Eleanor had promised to find a way to get his name to the Lord, even at the risk of her own respectable position in the Abbey. She had wanted nothing more than to see her new friend do the good in this world that he was obviously so capable of. She hadn't understood his own reluctance to become entangled with such a noble organization such as the Abbey, but she had respected it. Just as she had respected how closed-mouth he had been with his origins.

The last time Leo had seen his exorcist friend had been a few days ago when they had finally arrived in Loegres. She had promised to work hard to get his name through the ranks but had warned that it would be difficult. The Lord was apparently notoriously hard to get a hold of. Leo had nodded and had gone to find something to do in the meantime.

And now finally after days of waiting, there was news. His whole body was rigid with anticipation. Had his gamble paid off?

Leo trotted briskly up the stairs leaving the crowded city streets behind, heading up towards the Abbey Headquarters district. Everything he saw here was brand-new; crafted by malaks. In line with his train of thought, his eyes were abruptly drawn to the malak floating at his side.

"Say, Bienfu." He began. "This has been bugging me for a while now…" He raised an eyebrow. "Why are you so different to all the other malaks I see the exorcists using?"

Bienfu straightened with pride. "That's because I'm a normin malak!" He announced proudly with his paws on his hips.

Leo cocked his head. "Huh?"

Bienfu rolled his eyes. "We normin are special malaks of our own rights! We're strong, resilient, and powerful! Not to mention super cute! Ask anyone, and they'll say that normin malaks are the best!"

Leo shook his head. "N-no, that's not what I meant, Bienfu. I meant how you have…" He searched for words.

Bienfu prompted, "Charm? Wit? Dazzlingly good looks?"

Leo snapped his fingers as he found a fitting phrase. "Free will."

"Bien…" The malak groaned. "Well… that's because all the malaks around here are bounded to the exorcists…" He shook his head in dismay. "And because of that, all the malaks have had their free will sealed away and are just used as tools for artes."

Leo's eyes were wide. "…That doesn't seem very nice at all."

He blinked. "Hold on. Does that mean that you're not bound to Eleanor?" Leo pointed accusingly.

Bienfu fiddled with his paws self-consciously, avoiding the man's glance. "W-well… Kind of…"

His eyebrow rose. "Kind of…?" He prompted.

Bienfu shook his head. "I'm bound to another owner, technically, but!" He shouted self-righteously, "That owner was cruel and cold! So very bad-bad!" He shuddered in fear.

"Oh, when I got away and found Madam Eleanor, the bad-bad times were over!" He leapt in glee. "Bien! I was so taken by how nice Madam Eleanor was to me, I instantly let her bond with me!" He suddenly stopped and drooped in the air. "But the previous bond is still there, and prevented her from fully bonding with me…"

"Huh." Leo let out. He summarized, "So because you're only partially bonded with Eleanor, you still have your free will?" He blinked. "Isn't that a good thing?"

Bienfu cried out suddenly, tears in his eyes, "Bien! No! That's terrible!" The tears spilled through the holes in his hat. "That means the bad-bad times aren't over! That I'll have to see… HER again!" He bawled and flung himself up and down in the air.

Leo watched in confusion and shook his head. "Honestly, Bienfu. I hope not all Malakhim with free will are as weird as you…"

* * *

"Madam Eleanor!" Bienfu cried as he charged forward in the air, teary-eyed. "Leo is such a big bad meanie face!"

Eleanor winced as her Malak charged and circled around her in agony, squealing about being called names by strangers. She looked over at Leo trotting up to her, right outside the gates of the Abbey. Leo naturally wasn't allowed inside the headquarters, being a civilian and all.

"Leo!" She scolded. "Do you enjoy demeaning my malak?"

Leo grinned. "Nah, I'm helping him." He insisted. "He just needs to grow thicker skin if he is to protect such a brilliant exorcist such as yourself."

"I… suppose that's not a bad idea." She hummed thoughtfully.

"BIEEEN! Not you too Madam Eleanor!" Bienfu cried as he vanished in a flash of green light, returning back into his vessel with a hum.

Leo chuckled. "Nice to see you again, Eleanor."

Eleanor responded in kind. "And you as well, Leo."

"So? What's the verdict? Did you manage to get my name to Lord Artorius?" Leo's anticipation rushed forward all at once, his entire body rigid. This was it; this would dictate his role in this world for the rest of his time here.

Eleanor sighed and shook her head.

Leo's heart dropped.

"I'm afraid that Lord Artorius has no patience for old friends, and that the Abbey has no need for rogues who don't know their own place." She explained softly.

Leo sighed. "And here I thought that he would make an exception for an old acquaintance." He looked up at the towering headquarter building in dismay. "…I guess I'll have to go out there and help however I can, even without exorcist artes."

He opened his mouth to thank Eleanor for all of her help when he noticed the smile playing on her lips, and the telltale glint in her eyes.

He glared at her. "…Arthur said yes, didn't he?"

Eleanor squealed, "Yes he did!" She giggled at Leo's deadpan, "yay."

Then the realization settled in for Leo. He'd learn how to fight daemons! He could help others in this world and help prevent tragedies like Aball for others! His newfound purpose could be realized!

He let out a whoop. "So! Who's training me?" Leo asked.

"Two guesses." Eleanor replied happily.

Leo's eyes widened. "What?!" He pointed wordlessly at her.

Eleanor's eyes narrowed. "Is there a problem with that?"

Leo hedged, "Well… maybe…" He gave a dramatic pause. It was payback time. He continued dramatically, "I mean, I just don't think you're safe to be around."

Eleanor's eye twitched.

"I might have to go and complain about your behavior to a higher up… I mean… my life is in constant danger whenever I'm within spear's length of you."

Two twitches.

"Seriously! I mean, what kind of an  _animal_  of an exorcist assaults people, unprovoked, when they bring her APPLES!"

With gritted teeth and a profoundly annoyed expression, Eleanor stressed, "I  _told_  you Leo… it was… an ACCIDENT."

Leo grinned. It was too easy to bug her.

He drawled, "Perhaps… I looked like a daemon? Oh no, better yet, perhaps you attacked me for my  _devilishly_ handsome looks? Does the great and pure exorcist Eleanor Hume actually have a secret crush on me? Ooh! I can imagine the headlines in the bulletins tomorrow! 'Well-respected exorcist publicly shamed by scandalously saucy love affair!'"

Eleanor froze. That did it. He was dead. Leo had three seconds before she  _actually_  stabbed him with her spear.

With his well-honed senses all screaming danger, Leo took the hint and without further ado turned tail and fled for his life.

Three seconds over, Eleanor sucked in a mighty breath.

"LEO! HOW DARE YOU INSINUATE SUCH VULGAR THINGS! PREPARE YOURSELF!"

Leo let out a call as he ran away. "That's what she said!"

A wordless shriek of outrage followed, along with the cacophony of objects crashing to the ground that were unfortunate enough to happen to be in the way of the charging duo.

* * *

"I still need to talk with Arthur." Leo stated as he gazed up at the sky. "I still need to know what happened during the Advent…"

The two, exorcist and newly-christened pupil, sat together on a bench in the square, having calmed down from their little chase.

Eleanor gave a thoughtful hum. "Well… as a pseudo-exorcist in training, I'd say it's only a matter of time until you get the chance to talk to him in person, one way or another."

Leo put a finger to his lips in thought. "Have you ever seen the man then?" Leo asked.

Eleanor looked abashed. "N-not recently. Lord Artorius is extremely busy these days," she admitted, "and I've only ever seen him from afar when he addresses the whole body of the Abbey. Aside from when he trained me, I haven't seen him at all."

She shook her head. "It's understandable. From what everyone can tell, the Abbey still has a long, long way to go before our dream of protecting the whole of Midgand from daemons comes to fruition. I'm sure that Lord Artorius will be hard to get ahold of. But!" She looked optimistic. "Don't worry! You'll run into him eventually!" She promised.

Leo nodded slowly. "I suppose." He shrugged. "Anyways… it's an idle curiosity at this point anyways. I just want to know what happened… and honestly, I'm not sure if I really want the answer anyways."

He leant back in the bench, gazing at the fountain in the main square. "…I suppose the best thing to do is to focus on what I  _can_  do now, and just wait until I get the chance to get some closure."

"That's the spirit!" Eleanor brightened. "Oh! That's right!" She clapped her hands together. "You need to pick out a new weapon!"

Leo blinked. "I already have one." He pointed out, in case Eleanor had spontaneously forgotten about his high-velocity rifle.

Eleanor shook her head. "All exorcists have specially-crafted weapons made of malak-forged metal that are especially effective against daemons. Since you're now a pseudo-exorcist, you need one as well! Surely that cannon of yours isn't the best in close quarters?"

Leo shrugged. "I suppose I'm in the market. I could take a look."

Eleanor stood, nodding to herself. "With malak-forged metal, you can take on daemons even without a malak providing you with exorcist artes."

She sobered abruptly. "Oh… That's right, I forgot to mention. Since you aren't officially enlisted, the Abbey most likely won't be providing you with a malak."

Leo winced. That wasn't great news.

"So," he began hesitantly, "what exactly am I going to be training for…?"

Eleanor shook her head. "I've decided to train you just as Lord Artorius trained me." She rose a lecturing finger. "Having the discipline of an exorcist is key to fighting off daemons, malak or not!"

Leo grunted. "Works for me. I'll take what I can get."

Eleanor nodded. "So, you'll choose a weapon then?"

Leo shrugged, unconvinced. "We'll see."

Eleanor led Leo to a local Abbey armory, one of the many armories dotted around the town meant to serve as a localized source of weaponry for the defense of the city if the need arose. The exorcist pulled a key from her pocket and unlocked the heavy door, pushing it open with a huff. Leo's eyes drank in the amazingly vast stores of weaponry illuminated by the daylight intruding into the darkened storeroom.

He let out a low whistle. "The Abbey sure has been busy, hasn't it?" He muttered.

"Yes, very much." Eleanor looked proud. "Anything catch your eye? Everything in this building has been imbued with malak-forged steel and will be especially effective against daemons."

Leo wandered up and down the aisles, carefully considering them all. Despite all his time travelling worlds, the only weapon he had ever really used in mass were firearms. There wasn't anything here that caught his eye. Spears, bows, swords, great swords; they were all a bit too medieval and cumbersome for him. He doubted he had the build to wield them, anyway.

Suddenly, a glint of metal in an obscure corner of the armory caught his eye. Leo's face split into a somber smile, to Eleanor's confusion. He raised his finger and pointed at a weapon laying underneath a thin layer of dust on top of a box in the corner.

"I'll take that one." He intoned.

"Are you sure?" Eleanor asked uncertainty. "The general consensus of the Abbey has been condemnation of that model of weapon for being impractical and dangerous to use. Not a single exorcist that I know of uses one of those."

Despite her words, Leo walked up to the weapon and picked it up, reverently blowing away the dust. With a few adjustments, he strapped the weapon on and with some false attempts, activated the blade that flew out flawlessly, despite its neglect.

He admired his reflection in the flawlessly sharp blade.

"I always did want one of these..." Leo muttered softy.

He turned around and faced Eleanor. "I'll take it." He confirmed, admiring his new weapon; a gauntlet blade, just like the one a certain raven-haired hunter used to own.

 _I'll keep you in mind, Velvet. I won't forget your or Laphi's sacrifice_. Leo promised mentally.

_I'll make those daemons pay._

With a flick of his wrist, the blade collapsed sharply into its sheath, ready to cleanse the world of daemons at a moment's notice.


	9. C07 - Training

**Chapter 7 – Training.**

The only time the capital of Loegres knew even a speck of peace was in the early morning. Birds chirped in their various little coops in the buildings that served as trees for them. The various mutterings of shopkeepers and the occasional burst of laughter from early-rising townsfolk sang in Leo's ears as he trudged through town, grumbling as he hefted the heavy packs in his arms.

He muttered under his breath as he walked. "You would think that I'm to be her servant, not her trainee." He sighed. "I think that should be all the stores she asked me to go to?" Leo prompted over his shoulder.

Bienfu, hovering alongside the man, nodded. "That's everything Madam Eleanor wanted." He confirmed. "And don't complain! Madam Eleanor is a fantastic master!"

Leo waved him off. "Says the servant who doesn't know any better."

Bienfu moaned in shock and denial and muttered to himself as the two headed back towards the Abbey in the light of the rising sun and to the song of the singing birds.

"…I wonder how her training is going to be like." Leo thought out loud. "She did warn me to get lots of sleep last night…" He glanced fondly at his brand-new polished gauntlet blade strapped on his right wrist.

"Either way, I'll definitely try my best." He promised.

Bienfu gave a pat on Leo's back. "That's the spirit, Bien! I'm sure Madam Eleanor will train you to become the best exorcist you could ever be! Maybe someday, you might even be able to handle a Malak with half the power and charm as me!"

Leo rolled his eyes. "Nah, that's easy. I just need to pay some random person a few gald to follow me for a bit around and yell the word 'BIEN' every five seconds. They would have ten times your charm, guaranteed."

Bienfu winced. "Bieeen… Leo you're so mean!"

Leo chuckled.

The malak suddenly slowed. "…Say, Leo." He hovered conspiratorially close to the man's ear. "You wouldn't have to have a  _thing_  for Madam Eleanor, would you?"

Leo nearly tripped on his own feet.

He whirled towards the malak and sputtered indignantly. "Wh-What?! What the hell gave you that impression?!" He yelled.

Bienfu grinned at the flustered pseudo-exorcist, nudging him slyly. "I can tell, you know! I'm sure that's the reason why you wanted to join the Abbey in the first place! This whole thing about talking with Lord Artorius is all just a façade, isn't it?" The Malak whispered conspiratorially, "It's okay, I know how it feels! Her innocence… so pure… so clean… It just makes you all warm and fuzzy inside, doesn't it!?"

SMACK!

Leo promptly whacked the perverted normin into the nearest planter with his free arm. "You little rat!" He shouted angrily at the planter. "Keep your thoughts to yourself!"

He huffed, shaking his head, and turned… to smack directly into another man. He swore as one of the packages dropped onto the paved floor below.

The stranger grunted. "Oof! Watch yourself, man!"

Leo fumbled with the other packages and apologized sincerely. "Sorry! I was distracted by perverted malakhim."

The stranger gave a laugh and bent down to pick up the package Leo dropped. "I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. You're joining the Abbey?" The man straightened, his strikingly brown eyes piercing Leo's.

Leo gave a shake of the head. "Not quite. I actually got express permission as a special case from the head of the Abbey. I'm to be trained as an exorcist, but to have no complete affiliation with the Abbey. A sort of pseudo-exorcist, if you will."

The stranger looked surprised. "That's quite the feat." He commented, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "But why not just join them?"

Leo elaborated, "It's not in my nature, really. I hate being tied down by regulations and orders. I'm a traveler at heart." He grinned. "And it all works out."

The stranger grinned back. "…I like the way you think."

He plopped the dropped package soundly on top of Leo's held pile. "I myself hate being tied down." He smirked slyly. "It's like bottling wind. It just doesn't work out." He gave a motivational slap on Leo's back. "Good luck. I can't say I like the Abbey at all, but you seem alright."

Leo blinked. "Thanks." He returned hesitantly.

Suddenly, Bienfu, wiping the dirt and picking a flower out of his ribbon on his hat, flew over. "Leo! Remember that Madam Eleanor is waiting! She won't be pleased if we're late!"

With shock, Leo realized that the sun was now properly high in the sky. "Damn, you're right!" He blinked as he noticed that the stranger was taking keen interest in Bienfu.

"Say," the stranger piped up, "is that malak yours?"

Leo shook his head. "Bienfu's my teacher's malak." He explained. "He came with me to help shopkeepers know that I'm legit, as I'm picking up stuff for her."

The stranger nodded absent-mindedly. "Strange to see a malak with such free will when tethered to an exorcist…"

Leo explained. "It's because Bienfu isn't fully tethered to my teacher. He's following her out of his own free will." He shook his head. "…Frankly, I don't care much for how the Abbey treats malakhim." He admitted openly. "For one, Bienfu here would be much, much more boring if he was like the other malaks the exorcists have around here."

The stranger once again looked surprised at his words. "…Yeah." He agreed softly. "I myself seriously despise the Abbey's control over malakhim." His fists furled. "It's just not right!"

Leo was surprised just how charged his words were.

The stranger abruptly collected himself, turning his gaze back up to the pseudo-exorcist. He gave a wry salute. "Good luck, man." He grinned. "And be careful to keep your mitts away from the Abbey's notion of Reason. Do what you think is right and keep on doing what you're doing." With that, he trotted off.

Leo blinked. "Thanks." He remembered himself. "The name's Leo, by the way!"

The stranger stopped and glanced over his shoulder. "Zaveid. See you around, Leo."

Leo watched him go, a peculiar expression on his face.

By his side, Bienfu murmured, "That man… is a malak."

Leo registered this with shock. "Huh. A free malak." He breathed. "How 'bout that." His eyes narrowed. "…No wonder he doesn't like the Abbey." He murmured.

The exorcist-to-be stood there in deep thought. Malakhim and free will… being subjugated by the Abbey. Mindless slaves. All in the name of reason. It was all very cold.

That malak's advice… was probably very sound.

A peculiar gust of wind blew and ruffled his hair, obscuring his vision for a second. When it died down, he couldn't see the jacketed malak anymore. It was almost as if he'd vanished into thin air.

"MIDGAND TO LEO!" Bienfu yelled.

"OH RIGHT!" Leo cursed as he hefted the packages in his arms and took off running towards the headquarters, Bienfu hot on his heels.

* * *

"First task I give you and you arrive late. I hope this won't be indicative of your dedication to our cause." Eleanor mock scolded as Leo gasped for breath, having just arrived in the empty courtyard in the exorcist headquarters with the packages in hand.

"It…" Leo gasped. "It… took a bit longer than expected. Sorry, Eleanor." He caught his breath and handed her the packages.

Eleanor nodded. "It's fine, Leo. Now, let's get started with our first day of training!" She nodded firmly. "Go ahead and open all those packages. They're all for you."

Leo looked in surprise. "Huh. Didn't know it was my birthday." He put the packages on a table set up in the middle of the courtyard with a huff. He flicked his wrist and used his gauntlet blade to slice open the packaging.

Eleanor watched him as he worked. "It seems you've been taking good care of your new weapon." She observed.

The man grinned, holding up his new weapon. "Yeah, I've always wanted one of these. Thanks for giving it to me."

Eleanor shook her head. "It's all part of the training. Thank me after you complete it, when you're ready to bond with malakhim in both mind and body."

Leo glanced over curiously at his teacher. "So, what does that entail, exactly?" He inquired.

Eleanor listed the items off the top of her head. "First comes the mental exercises. You need to get used to the idea of having something else in your body, something that has far more foreign power than your own."

"Secondly, when you bond with a malak, you contain the power of the malak using your body as a vessel, through and through. That means you'll then need to train to adapt yourself in advance to the increased strain such a bond will physically have on your body." She explained.

"Finally, you need to make sure your mental discipline is clean. Lord Artorius taught me that the key to be a good vessel for a malak is to have a clean mind, free of emotion."

Leo nodded, filing all the information away. "And this is all going off of the assumption that the Abbey will provide me with a malak one day?"

Eleanor looked hesitant. "Well… Whatever the case may be, malak or no malak, such training is crucial in ensuring you have the discipline to defeat daemons. Just swinging around malak-infused metal does not make you an exorcist. Neither does the constant use of malak artes make you an exorcist. The key to be a proper shield for the masses..."

She stiffened her back. "…Is to be one with Reason. In this world of hatred and chaos, Reason is the only shield we have against the hordes of daemons that encroach upon this land."

"Reason… huh?" Leo muttered to himself.

His thoughts turned to the malak named Zaveid whom he had just met. The man's warnings resounded clearly in his head. Leo resolved to take everything his teacher taught him with a grain of salt.

He said none of this, though. He could tell that she honestly believed in everything she was saying. It was one of her flaws.

Leo gave her a nod. "Alright. Let's get to it then." He went back to slicing the packages. "Huh. What are these?" He held up a container with his fingers. "Some kind of gel?"

Eleanor went up to him and explained, "These are gels designed for exorcists. They heal much better than apple gels when rubbed onto wounds but are conversely much more expensive. Since I am not particularly proficient in healing artes, I had you pick up a whole stock of gels for our training."

Leo cringed. "Why do I get a bad feeling about this…"

Eleanor shook her head sadly. "I'm afraid that this training will hurt, a lot, as it did for me as well."

Her expression hardened. "Are you sure you're up for this?"

Leo's thoughts flashed. Laphi's face. Velvet's face. The broken towns of Midgand. The chaos in the lands. Eleanor's awesome power. The despised faces of daemons.

He clenched his fist, steadily holding Eleanor's gaze. "Where do we begin?"

Eleanor nodded, sufficiently impressed. She suddenly leapt backwards, drawing her spear. "First, there shall be a test, to determine the full extent of your abilities. Draw your sword."

Leo gulped and glanced at the massive packages of gels on the table. He then glanced at the sharp tip of Eleanor's spear. He sighed. This was going to hurt.

He extended his gauntlet blade.

"Prepare yourself!" Eleanor called.

Leo muttered under his breath, "Oh boy. Here goes nothing…"

The two rushed at each other.

* * *

Leo groaned as he trotted through the hallways of the Exorcist headquarters, a few hours later.

In the time span since he had started training, he'd learned a new definition for the word pain. All throughout his body, gels lathered various spear wounds, held in place by bandages wrapped around every appendage in his body. Eleanor hadn't been kidding when she said that the training would hurt.

He followed Eleanor's directions that she'd given him when she had let him go for lunch to the mess hall of the headquarters. The instant he stepped through the open doors into the hall, he cringed as people quickly noticed his entry. The conversation audibly dimmed while the whispers grew as people reacted to the presence of the stranger who Lord Artorius himself had permitted to train in the Abbey.

He gave a meek wave to everyone watching him and then went on his way towards the cooks, trying to ignore the eyes following him. There must've been maybe 20-30 exorcists in that room alone.

He had to wonder himself just how lucky he had been to manage to convince Arthur to let him into his establishment with such lenient terms. In retrospect, his request sounded even more ridiculous.

What kind of paragon of Reason would accept such a selfish request?

He plonked his tray down on an empty table. Eleanor wouldn't be joining him, as she had been called by her mentor Teresa to attend to some other matters. He tried not to look as lonely as he felt. Instead, he focused on the food in front of him. "Food" being a term that was quite generous for the slop in front of him. He grimaced and nearly choked as he let the nasty slop slither down his throat.

"It's not too bad, once you get used to it."

Leo looked up in surprise to see a fellow exorcist trotting up to his table with a tray. "May I?" The man asked, gesturing to the table.

Leo gestured for him to go for it. He noted wryly, "I imagine so. I can't say I'll be staying here particularly long enough to get used to the food here, though." He raised a pointed eyebrow. "I'm sure that's what you wanted to talk about."

The man across from him sat down and shrugged sheepishly. "I can't deny I'm curious." He studied Leo carefully. "Why would the Lord Artorius, infamous for being a man of reason, make such a seemingly unreasonable choice to allow a person to be trained as an exorcist, but not enlist? What is it about you that lets you have such an advantageous position in the Abbey?"

Leo shrugged. "Your Lord Artorius is an old acquaintance. I'm honestly not completely sure why he accepted my request, but I imagine he knows me well enough to entrust me with the ways of an exorcist. I'd never even dreamed the man would be in such a position until I heard it from Eleanor. I met her, and I just figured I'd give it a try. Eleanor was kind enough to help me out and ask for me."

The man nodded, filing all the information away. "Eleanor's a good woman to help you out like that." He commented.

Leo grinned. "Yeah, she really is a good woman. Some might say even  _too_ good."

The man grinned back. "She is rather innocent, isn't she?"

Leo laughed. "Innocent?! One time at camp, I told her that I'd dropped her spear in the water, and she nearly cried! Never mind that I was sitting on it the whole time!"

The other man burst out laughing. Leo joined him.

They fell into silence and began to work away at their food in the meanwhile. Leo kept grimacing and sending wary glances at the food he was eating.

"…Why?" The question was sudden.

Leo glanced up from his food, looking for elaboration.

The man continued, "Why not just join us fully? Why risk not getting in to the Abbey at all and attempt to ask the head for such a favor? I assume you want to kill daemons, just like the rest of us. So why not fully enlist?"

Leo nodded. It was this question that was the key source of the contention between him and the rest of the exorcists in the first place. Might as well explain it away now. He responded firmly, "It's not in my nature. Arthur" (the man grimaced at the informal naming of his superior) "knew that, I'm sure, which is why he granted such an odd request. I'm a wandering soul, by nature. It was either a loose affiliation, or no affiliation. And at least if I'm trained, I can help people in my travels."

The man nodded. "So…" he pieced it together in his head. "You're a traveler then? I suppose I can respect that decision, if not a bit irrational."

Leo nodded. "I suppose I am an irrational sort of man." He grinned. "Anyways, what about you? Regale me with your reason for enlisting, if you don't mind."

The man nodded. "I joined because my family told me to. My family always considered me the throwaway child, so they had me join the Abbey in a cheap symbol of trust, to gain favor."

Leo winced. "Ouch. Sounds horrible."

The man shook his head. "Nevertheless, I am glad I joined. Here, at least, I can use my innate skills towards the betterment of the world. Furthermore, I am not alone. My sister also joined."

Leo grinned at the fond look on the man's face. "Well that doesn't sound all too bad."

The man nodded. "I aspire to move up in the ranks. There have been rumors that the Lord will be announcing a ranking system for exorcists, categorizing all exorcists by innate ability for resonance. I hope to show enough potential to rise to the rank of praetor."

Leo was confused. "Praetor?"

"That's right, you don't know any of the rankings." The man nodded. "Apparently, the ranks will go from orderly, all the way to legate, the strongest of the strongest. Praetors are a step down from legate, a rank telling of so much inborn talent that I could never hope to achieve. I hope to prove myself as an exorcist Praetor, and not only that, attempt to stand out as a primus, or even a consul."

His ambition was obvious in his demeanor. "Mark my words, the Abbey will succeed in its goal of protecting the world. Everyone here is going to make sure it happens."

Leo hummed thoughtfully. "It does seem like everyone I meet around here has some bone to pick against the daemons."

The man laughs. "Of course! I'm sure that's why you came here as well, no?"

"You guessed it." Leo nodded. "I've… lost people to daemons. I'm sure you have too."

The man shook his head. "No, I haven't. However, I'm well aware of how lucky I've been."

He indicated with his head over his shoulder. "For example, Mac over there got his wife torn to shreds by a merchant who turned into a daemon right in front of her. He got away by hiding under her dead body." He pointed over Leo's shoulder. "Carla over there lost all three of her kids to a daemon raid on her town. She has nothing left to live for, except to protect other kids from the same thing."

Leo studied the people he mentioned. All of these peoples, their lives having been ruined by daemons… with a single drive. He summarized, "So they're all here, trying to make sure that what happened to them doesn't happen to someone else."

"Yes." The man nodded. "It's the reasonable thing to do. All in the interest of a better world. The greater good. Lord Artorius taught us this. We would all gladly give our lives away to make sure the tragedies that have occurred do not repeat themselves."

Leo was pensive. "The greater good…" He muttered.

_What a dangerous line of thought._

Suddenly, Leo found that he had lost his appetite, not that he had had much to begin with. He abruptly stood, groaning as the scars on his back made themselves known again.

The other man also stood, himself having finished his food long ago. "Painful, huh?" The man commented.

Leo nodded arduously. "I suppose I should get back to practicing meditation."

The stranger chuckled. "Stay strong, Leonex Davidson. The first step is always the hardest. Work hard, and perhaps one day, you'll see that the Abbey truly is a place to be and decide to join us."

_Somehow… I doubt that._

"We'll see." Leo responded neutrally. "I never got your name by the way, Mr. Praetor." He extended a hand.

The man looked on in surprise. "I'm no praetor yet." He reminded him.

Leo smiled. "I'm sure it won't be long. You just strike me as someone who fits the description."

The man smiled back and clasped his hand on Leo's. "I appreciate the sentiment, if anything. Thank you. The name is Oscar Dragonia. My thanks for indulging my curiosity."

They shook hands in respect.

"It was my pleasure. I'll see you around, Oscar! Call me Leo!"

The two went their separate ways. Leo tossed the remains on his food tray into the bin on his way out the door, grimacing in disgust.

There was a lot to get used to here.

* * *

Night reigned over the Abbey headquarters. An exhausted Leo grunted as he slumped down on the edge of a walkway overlooking the city of Loegres. Hell of a first day.

He hissed as he massaged his wounds on his calves. Eleanor was quite the fighter. And he evidently wasn't. He'd barely been able to put even the slightest of scratches on his experienced teacher. Still, she had been optimistic for his future.

But then again, she was always optimistic.

Overall, Leo himself thought his first day of training had been promising. Eleanor had warned that with his rate of progress, it would take months to get him to a level where she would be comfortable calling him malak-ready, but he didn't mind. Whatever it took, he'd do it to kill daemons with his own hands. She had been impressed by the dedication of her new student and had promised to make sure that she'd do whatever it took to get him to that level.

On the way out of the headquarters, he'd spotted a rather tall ladder leaning against one of the tall malak-built walls. Curiosity had gotten the better of him and had brought him to this stunning view of Loegres, shining in all of its splendor.

The city sprawled out beneath him, illuminated only by the ever-present street torches, alongside the meek lights of candles in the windows of the countless residences in the city. The sky above him was silent and star-filled, with not a hint of the new moon in sight.

It was a gorgeous sight.

Leo exhaled softly into the night sky. He wouldn't call himself content. Rather… he considered himself to be occupied.

At the very least, he had something to do. But he wasn't exactly committed. Even to Eleanor, he was still quite reserved. This whole arrangement was what a part of him would consider perfect, he reckoned. Quick and easy to get out of, but still giving him something to do for the next few years.

He sighed again, feeling the slight breeze on his face.

Suddenly, he felt a major sense of déjà vu. The sense of being watched even when he knew he was alone. The same feeling he had felt that night on the roof of the Crowe residence all those months ago. He did the same thing he did that night.

"I knew I wasn't imagining things last time." He called out into the night.

He turned around and this time, he wasn't alone. An exorcist malak, he deduced from her clothing, stood on the walkway behind him, simply watching him. Her expression was hidden by a bird-shaped mask on her face, her mouth frozen in a neutral expression.

Silence. Leo waited for a response.

"Leonex Davidson." The woman spoke quietly. "It's been awhile."

Making the connections quickly, Leo's eyes widened. "Ah! So, you're Seres!"

The malak nodded in confirmation.

Leo looked thoughtful. "So that night, the night before I left Aball, it was you who was watching me. I couldn't see you back then back then… but now… after the Advent…"

Seres interrupted his train of thought. "After the Advent, the world changed." Seres walked towards him, but didn't look at him, instead facing the vista of Loegres and the world beyond. "All of a sudden, humanity could see Malaks. Everybody, not just those with exorcist potential." She summarized. "Chaos reigned freely throughout the land as people were driven into panic as the very established nature of their lives were torn apart once again, seven years after the Opening."

Leo saw where this was going.

He interjected, "And then out of nowhere came Lord Artorius, who, with an experienced and wise eye, found the solution to the daemonblight using the newly-christened exorcists who used the newly visible malaks as weapons to wield against the daemons. A group of daemon-hunters whose aim was to bring reason to a chaotic and burning world."

Seres nodded. "You speak the truth. To this day, the Abbey continues to struggle to bring peace to the Holy Midgand Empire."

She turned meaningfully to Leo. "But make no mistake. The Abbey will succeed. It is bound to, with the might of its exorcists. The power of its leader grows more day by day. Eventually, the Abbey will gain more power than even the very rulers of the Empire."

Leo agreed wholeheartedly. That had been his conclusion as well.

He noted neutrally, "You say that as if it's a bad thing."

The malak turned to him curiously. "Surely you see the problem here? That is why you refused full affiliation with the Abbey, correct?" She tilted her head. "Or am I mistaken?"

He got the feeling that she was testing him.

Leo shrugged. "Of course, you're right. In my experience, absolute power corrupts absolutely. One man's idea of 'the greater good' might be different to another's." He shook his head.

"I'll have no part in the potential subjugation of the world." He promised.

And that was what he hadn't told anyone.

Eleanor, his new friend Oscar, the population of Loegres; all of them were blind to what he saw as obvious. The world; the worlds in general were never as clean-cut as these people were making them out to be. That's why he always treasured his freedom, above everything else. It was in his nature.

Seres seemed satisfied with his response.

A light breeze blew, rustling the leaves in the courtyard down below.

Leo broke the silence. "Perhaps I shouldn't be telling you this? You are Arthur's malak still, right?"

The malak gave a simple nod but didn't elaborate. She didn't explain if she had been told by the man to talk to Leo, or if she had come out of free will. Leo suspected the latter.

He broke to the heart of the matter. "…Are you going to tell me what happened?" He asked quietly.

The malak looked at him.

"Laphicet and Velvet Crowe." His expression hardened. Despite the fact that it had been months since the Advent and that he'd found a new purpose in life, the man hadn't forgotten about the two.

She knew what had happened to the two kids, and he knew it.

"…That is not for me to reveal." The malak intoned softly.

Leo's temper flared.

He opened his mouth to yell at her, to accuse her of being cruel, of anything, frustrated beyond belief to be this close to answers, to closure, and to be denied of it, when his breath hitched. In the darkness of the night, he could barely discern the glistening of her wet cheeks under her mask.

He clamped his mouth shut, his mind whirling with what the malak's show of emotion could possibly mean in response to his answer.

She spoke with a deceptively steady voice. "Artorius himself will find you and tell you what fate the two Crowes have been met with." She turned away from the man "…And then…" She whispered. "…you can judge for yourself…"

She paused.

"…whether you believe him or not."

And just like that, the Malak left, leaving Leo staring at her retreating form. His eyes narrowed at the implication.

He supposed he would do just that then. It might take a long time, but he would wait. One day, he'd get answers from Artorius.

And then he'd judge the man for any sins he showed.

His fists tightened. And then Leo turned sharply away, walking off determinedly back towards the ladder, the stunning view and his reminiscing forgotten. He had training to overcome.

The wind picked up on the empty walkway, whistling quietly in the darkness.


	10. C08 - Malak

**Chapter 8 – Malak.**

Travelers conversed amongst themselves as they trotted along the Danann highway between Loegres and Port Zekson. The foot traffic on this particular stretch of paved pathway tended to consist of a few carriages, numerous groups of travelers banding together for safety, and the occasional exorcist on patrol. There was one such exorcist on duty right now.

"Sorry, 'scuse me."

Leo apologized as he weaved between an oncoming carriage and a group of travelers bound for Port Zekson.

"Oi! Where're you headed in such a hurry eh?" One of the travelers called.

Leo responded, "Exorcist training! I've been assigned to do a sweep of the highway and to make sure there aren't any daemons around." He blinked, turning around fully towards the travelers. "Say, you guys seen any on your way here?"

The group murmured amongst themselves. "He's an exorcist!" A girl exclaimed. Her mother hushed her.

The same man who had hailed him shook his head, his tone dramatically changing in an instant. "No, sir exorcist. Sorry for blocking yer way." He gave a deep bow.

Leo wildly shook his head. "Whoa there! Don't worry about it!" He gave an honest smile. "I've only been in training for a few months now, so I'm not even technically an exorcist yet." He looked sheepish. "Thanks for the info. Safe travels, all of you!"

The others smiled and waved, wishing the brave exorcist trainee luck.

Leo grinned as he trotted onwards, away from the group. He wasn't going to lie and say it wasn't nice being appreciated. Even if he wasn't the most adept exorcist. Far from it. The man tested out his gauntlet blade as he walked, flicking it out and in again to make sure the mechanism glided smoothly. Satisfied, he was about continue his patrol when he heard a vicious howl close by.

Definitely a daemon.

"Excuse me! Exorcist in training coming through!" He yelled as a group of travelers fearfully ran in his direction. The group parted for him like water, and he ran through, yelling his thanks as he sprinted in the direction of the howl.

The howl came again, this time much closer. Leo's eyes were drawn to a cave in the mountainside, a little way off the beaten track. He reached for his ever-present rifle slung over his right shoulder. With a few deep breaths, he clicked the safety off and ventured into the darkness.

He had to be careful. If he was cornered, he was dead. Malak-infused metal or not.

Ever so softly, the man edged his way carefully into the dark cave, keeping his rifle raised and his eyes moving. Another howl echoed loudly through the narrow tunnel, this time accompanied by growling of a different kind. The daemon was fighting something.

He turned the final corner and blinked as his eyes registered a strange sight.

What appeared to be a grey baby wolf of all things was putting up an impressive fight against a sizable pack of werewolf daemons, cornered at the very back of the cave. Leo blinked. He was pretty sure that wolves didn't naturally live in these parts.

Nevertheless, he wasn't going to stand by and let the daemons kill the poor animal. He raised his rifle and aimed at the forms in the dark.

He exhaled and fired.

The pup yelped in terror as his world turned into chaos. Flashes like lighting lit up the cave, each flash accompanied by a roaring crack that deafened its ears. Each time the cave flashed, it showed another daemon being struck by something unseen and dying in howls of agony. It was all the pup could do to curl up in a ball and whimper as the monsters fell dead around it.

Finally, silence fell.

The pup slowly uncurled and gazed around warily. All the daemons lay dead around him, bleeding from holes in their chests. Suddenly, a human came out of the shadows towards him. The pup began to growl warningly.

"Hey there, little buddy." Leo let out in a soft, tender voice.

The poor animal continued to growl and backed up away from him. Its rear brushed up against the back of the cave and the growling increased in fervor. It was cornered and terrified.

The man carefully considered his options. He would prefer not to have his neck torn out, but at the same time he also refused to leave an injured wolf pup alone. Suddenly, an idea formed in his head. Abruptly, Leo sighed and slid his back down the wall of the cave, seemingly uncaring of the wolf's presence and growls.

"What a time to be alive, wouldn't you say little guy?" He commented dryly, his voice echoing in the confines of the cave.

He noticed that the pup had stopped growling and was instead staring at him curiously. Encouraged, the man went on.

"It's been interesting for me too." He grinned. "I've been training to be an exorcist these past few months. I met this woman named Eleanor, and she really helped me out by getting my name to the leader of the Abbey. I used to know him. His name's Artorius."

He pulled out a few rounds from his pocket and started feeding them into his rifle. "Artorius let me join the Abbey, even though I said I didn't want to follow orders. That was months ago, and now Eleanor's been training the absolute shit out of me." He shopped reloading and chuckled. "It's been so damn painful, you couldn't believe."

He abruptly glanced at the wolf's wounds. "…Well, maybe you could. Sorry. Poor choice of words."

"Anyways," he continued, "I've been pretty good at learning everything she's been teaching me. She says that very soon I could be considered a fully trained exorcist orderly, sans a malak, of course." He sighed, leaning his head against the wall.

"…Despite how ready I am and how I have a decent amount of natural exorcist talent, the Abbey still refuses to give me a malak. They want me to enlist fully." He shook his head softly. "But if there's one thing I hate more than anything, it's being tied up."

He glanced at the wolf and showed the animal his gauntlet blade. "Still, I'm deeply grateful for all the training Eleanor's given me. I can kill daemons now, albeit with much effort. I've gotten mildly used to using this gauntlet blade, and it's already saved my life more times than I can count."

He pulled out a fresh round for his rifle from his pocket. The strange silver-tipped round glinted in the murky light. "Not only that, but I've managed to make my rifle here viable for killing daemons too! These projectiles are molded from malak-infused metal." He explained. "The gunpowder is a mix of flamestone and sulfur, while the casing is regular old metal. The actual bullet is what kills the daemons, so I have to make sure it's made up of as much malak-infused alloy as I can."

Leo took the rifle and cocked it, chambering a round, and slotted the last round in. "It's hard to get the metal, but I can get it here and there. The Army of Midgand sometimes has surplus malak-forged weapons, and with my status as 'friend of the Abbey,'" Leo pulled out an insignia-marked set of papers from his coat and showed it to the wolf, "I can purchase their weapons, and reforge the metal in them into bullets."

Leo gently placed his loaded rifle on the ground next to him, disarmingly, and clicked on the safety. He returned the papers back into his coat pocket and looked at the pup directly. "It's worth it though. To kill daemons. To make a difference in this world."

"The name's Leo, by the way. Leonex Davidson." He finished.

He took a good long look at the pup, who was staring back at him with shockingly intelligent eyes. Leo's eyes narrowed as the wolf wavered on its feet.

"Shit." He swore.

Forgetting all pretenses of casual conversation, Leo leapt to his feet and immediately made his way over to the pup, ignoring the harsh restarting growls. He grunted as the small wolf bit into his coat arm, viciously tearing away at it and cutting into the flesh underneath. He took the opportunity to dig through the distracted animal's fur. Copious amounts of blood coated his hands. Not good. This guy needed healing artes. And there was only one place he knew where to get those.

Suddenly, the growling and tearing stopped. Hesitantly, the pup let go of the man's arm, staring intently up at the human who wasn't harming it.

Cooing softly, Leo intoned to the wounded animal, "Stand still, okay?"

He proceeded to reach into his coat and pull out a few gels to slather on the wounds. As quickly as he could, Leo wrapped some sterile bandages around the animal's length to cover them. The animal whined in displeasure at the tightness of the bandages, but surprisingly seemed to have decided that this human wasn't doing it any harm.

Once he had finished, Leo gave the wolf a tentative pat on the head. "I want to help you." He intoned. "Will you let me?" He stared into those eyes. And surprisingly, the wolf blinked, giving a single tilt of its head. A nod. Leo's eyes were wide.

_It understands me._

This was no regular wolf.

And then the pup gave up entirely, collapsing into Leo's hands. Evidently it had decided to entrust its life in its entirety to the stranger. Leo cursed. The animal had already lost too much blood. He fumbled with his weapon strap, shouldering his gun, and then hefted the wolf in his arms, heedless of the blood spilling over his coat.

Then, as quickly as possible, the man began to sprint back to Loegres.

* * *

Screams echoed throughout the capital as people saw the blood on Leo's arms and the wild animal he was bringing into the capital. Leo paid them all no mind, all his efforts concentrated on keeping pressure on the pup's wounds and on getting the wolf to Eleanor. She was the only one he knew who was able to use healing artes.

He could feel the animal's pulse slowing and hear it's wheezing grow weaker and weaker. Most worryingly of all, he could see strange purple particles start to accumulate around it like flies to a corpse.

He didn't know what they were, but they clearly weren't good news.

"Come on, little guy! Hang in there!" He yelled, speeding up as best he could. He sprinted up the stairs towards the Abbey headquarters.

The guards at the gate yelled in alarm as a delinquent civilian charged through the open doorway, utterly ignoring them. Leo ignored the ironclad footsteps following in pursuit behind him and shouldered his way into the headquarter barracks designated for praetors only.

He charged through the familiar halls and took the usual route to Eleanor's room, ignoring the incredulous whispers of bystanders. ("Is that Leonex Davidson?"). He finally skidded to a stop in front of Eleanor's room gasping for breath and yelled at the top of his lungs.

"Eleanor! Wake the hell up!" He banged on her door with a free hand.

Suddenly, he froze, now held at spear point by panting guards. "You there! You are under arrest for trespassing in Abbey territory! State your name and purpose, NOW!"

The door behind Leo opened up abruptly and exorcist Praetor Eleanor Hume of the Abbey stormed out seething at the guards in her sleepwear.

"Fools! Do you not recognize him?!" She yelled exceedingly grouchily. "This is Leonex Davidson, official friend of the Abbey, who was granted orderly rank access to the Headquarters months ago! Furthermore, he is my pupil and was given express permission to be present in the praetor dorms. Why are you harassing him?!"

Leo shuffled around in his blood-soaked coat and pulled out his paperwork showing the insignia of the Abbey with a sheepish smile. "Sorry fellas; was in a bit of a rush today."

"O-oh," the guard that had spoken stammered, "I'm terribly sorry, Madam praetor! It was just, your pupil ran in so quickly and suddenly that-"

"-That you immediately jumped to conclusions. I understand." Eleanor sighed and collected herself. "It was all just a terrible misunderstanding." She summarized in a disarming manner. "Rest assured that I shall discipline my pupil appropriately. Thank you for your help. You may all go now."

The guards all smartly saluted the high-ranking exorcist and left promptly with their tails between their legs. That matter having been dealt with, Leo instantly whirled around and hefted the wolf in his arms in Eleanor's face.

"Eleanor!" He cried. "I need you to heal this guy, now!"

Eleanor blinked. "What? A wolf?!" She leaned closer over the raggedly breathing animal. Suddenly, she gasped when another purple particle buzzed over it. "…No! This wolf… is a lesser malak!"

"What? It's a malak?" Leo looked at the wolf in shock. "…What does that matter?"

Eleanor explained quickly, "When an untethered malak uses up all its powers, it turns into a daemon." She looked grim. "I'm afraid that the only way to prevent this process is to find a vessel for it."

Leo didn't hesitate. "I'll do it."

Eleanor's eyes widened. "What?! But Leo! We haven't completed your training yet!"

"But you said it yourself that I'm very close." Leo pointed out. "I can deal with the repercussions, I'm sure. Besides, the malak is, as you said, a lesser malak, so the shock wouldn't be as great as the malaks the Abbey normally gives to new recruits."

Eleanor hesitantly acquiesced. "…If you're sure, then I won't doubt your abilities."

Leo grinned. "Thanks, 'master.'"

Suddenly, Leo heard a whine. He glanced down to see the pup in his arms straining its neck to look at its savior. He met the pup's eyes and saw the message it was trying to convey.

It was asking, "Are you sure?"

Leo gave a determined nod to the pup. Promptly, the man looked back up at his teacher. "Tell me what to do."

Eleanor sighed and nodded. "First, you will need to give the malak a name. As this is a wild malak, that decision is completely up to you."

Leo looked down at the pup, still straining its neck to keep its eyes on its savior. He nodded. "This guy's name will be… Hawk."

The pup seemed happy with the choice. It relaxed its neck, letting its head roll back and closing its eyes in acceptance.

Eleanor nodded. "Okay. Repeat the words after me. O child of the fountain of creation, these vows we exchange."

Leo nodded. "O child of the fountain of creation," he recited, "these vows we exchange."

"May our purpose, resplendent, help purify this cursed world."

The wolf's blood dripped steadily onto the stone floor. "May our purpose, resplendent, help purify this cursed world." Leo closed his eyes as a brilliant blue sealing circle formed above him, the mana rushing vibrantly and unfamiliarly through his body.

"Remember this true name I bestow unto you." Eleanor spoke softly.

Leo gazed tenderly down at the unconscious malak in his hands. "Remember this true name I bestow unto you."

"Accipiter."

"…Accipiter." Leo whispered.

The binding lights hovering over Leo dissipated, the ritual complete. The wolf pup now known as Hawk vanished in a flash of green light and entered his new vessel, resting and recovering, his life fully saved.

Leo on the other hand, just stood there, staring off into the other side of the hallway.

Eleanor was concerned. Lesser malak or not, an exorcist's first binding was always extraordinarily tough on the body, and even subsequent bindings were still quite difficult to overcome, even for well-seasoned exorcists. She worried for his well-being. "Well? How do you feel?"

Leo was silent. Eleanor walked around him to his front, worried. Once she saw his face, she facepalmed. On cue, the man let out a very loud snore.

"How in the world…" She muttered as she shook her head in disbelief over her pupil. "Guard!" She called to the man stationed down the hall.

"Yes, ma'am?" The soldier asked as he made his way over.

She gestured at the man sleeping on his feet. "Carry my student over to the hospital wing, please. Let the doctors know that the man just formed his first pact with a malak."

The guard looked confused. "…Ma'am, if I may ask, I thought that the higher-ups had decreed that your student wasn't to receive a malak from the Abbey until he enlisted officially."

Eleanor sighed. "This idiot just made a pact with a free Malak he found in the wild. It's out of my hands now. Can you bring him there?" The guard nodded. "Thank you. Make sure to let the doctors know of his condition. I'm going back to bed."

"Will do, ma'am." The soldier responded respectfully and turned to the man sleeping on his feet, ready to carry him.

Leo let out a particularly loud snort. Both soldier and exorcist stared.

The soldier muttered under his breath, "How does a person…?"

Eleanor shook her head in wonder. "Believe me, that's a mystery not a soul in Midgand can solve."

* * *

Three days later, Eleanor found herself in the Abbey headquarters headed to a general body meeting for praetor-rank exorcists once again.

She sighed to herself, ruminating over current state of affairs in the world. The Abbey had been slowly gaining power and had been establishing outposts in major cities across Midgand, however there just wasn't enough recruits with ample resonance to be considered suitable for even the lowest rank of exorcist-orderly.

There was only a grand total of 30 praetors so far and all of them had been worked close to death trying to establish their own respective footholds and maintaining their own sectors. Recently, Eleanor herself had been assigned by Legate Melchior to patrol duty which meant she had to oversee both the entire process of eliminating and tracking daemons in certain sectors as well as keep tabs on any corruption in the ranks in those areas. It was tiring and unrewarding work, that was to be sure.

She shook her head. Complaining would do her no good.

All that mattered was that her work was part of something greater. It was crucial that such duties be maintained so that the Abbey could eventually be able to quell the rising tide of daemons and save the people of Midgand.

Already, the people of Loegres had come to fully recognize the exorcists of the Abbey as the saviors of the town. The exorcists' miraculous skill with the malakhim provided by the now-famous Lord Artorius was the stuff of legend. It warmed Eleanor's heart to see the masses so free of the worry that had plagued them half a year ago, before the Advent had changed everything.

She held her chin up proudly. She was a praetor trained by Lord Artorius himself, after all. She had to act like it.

"Madam Praetor!" She turned at the call as an exorcist orderly ran up to her and saluted.

She returned the salute. "What is it, orderly?" She asked.

The orderly nodded. "It's about your student, ma'am."

Eleanor sighed in relief. "Oh good. Has he recovered?"

The orderly shook his head. "Actually, apparently…" He hesitated. "According to the doctors the man has… disappeared."

Eleanor's eye twitched. "What."

The orderly stammered at the increasingly wrathful praetor glaring at him. "Y-yes. The nurse in charge of looking over him went away for a break and when she returned, the bed was empty."

Eleanor sighed. "Leo…" She muttered in exasperation. She turned back to the orderly. "I think I know where he went. Thank you for letting me know."

The orderly gave another salute and ran off.

Eleanor shook her head in disbelief and turned away from her original course. Praetor duties would have to wait. She had a student to yell at.

* * *

"Hey, hey, hey! Hawk! Quit it!"

Eleanor slowed as she approached the corner, hearing the voice of her student, awake and strong, laughing and yelling. She turned the corner and looked on with exasperation at the scene in the courtyard, one of the man's favorite haunts in the headquarters. Leo and his new malak Hawk were in the middle of a play-fight on the grass. It would appear that Hawk was winning the fight with strategic licks on the man's face. Leo was sputtering through the saliva, clearly being overpowered.

Eleanor's eyes narrowed as she noticed the bandages on her student's arms.

"Leo!" Her reprimanding call echoed throughout the empty courtyard.

Both man and malak froze, fight forgotten, turning around to look at the exorcist praetor furiously strutting through the grass towards them.

"Oops." Leo muttered to the wolf. "Busted."

Eleanor came to a stop in front of the two lying on the grass and put her hands on her hips, glaring down at them. "While I'm glad to see that you're alright after the vessel ritual, you should know better than to be out and about when your wounds haven't even healed yet!" Eleanor lectured heatedly. Leo scratched his head sheepishly while his malak's tail wrapped between his legs. "What were you thinking?!" She demanded.

Leo gave an apologetic smile. "Sorry Eleanor… it was just that this guy was getting restless cooped up in the hospital wing and wanted to go do something." He ruffled the wolf's head fondly, who leaned into the hand. Leo grinned. "This guy really hates sitting still." He remarked.

Eleanor remarked dryly, "Funny, just like his master." She sighed and then settled down on the grass across from Leo, bunching up her dress. She prompted, "So? How're you feeling, my disobedient student?"

Leo grunted as he sat up, wiping the last of the spit off of his face with his sleeve. Hawk, seeing that his master would be occupied, went off to trot around the courtyard, sniffing at the ground. Leo admitted, "I've been feeling really sick, to be honest. Even more than usual."

"More than usual?" Eleanor looked worried. "Are you normally sick? Why didn't you tell me this earlier?!"

Leo waved her concern off. "I have allergies."

Concern turned to amusement. "…Allergies."

"Hey!" Leo looked defensive. "Don't give me that. It's a perfectly legitimate medical disability." On cue, he let out a drawn-out sneeze. He groaned. "Not to mention," he sniffed, "it's the middle of fucking spring!"

 _God, I miss antihistamines._ He muttered mentally.

Eleanor giggled at her student's melodramatic suffering. "Well," she analyzed, "it's normal to feel sick after a new bond with a malak. To be honest, I'm impressed with how well you've taken it so far. Clearly you're recovering well enough if you're able to give your doctors the slip." She gave the man a glare.

Leo waved her off nonchalantly. "Bah. Be careful there, 'Master.' One might think that you were actually expressing pride in me."

Eleanor gave serious nod. "Actually, yes. Not many new recruits, resonant or not, could go from where you were when we met six months ago to where you are today. Your ingenuity with your handheld cannon device in particular has made you a worthy exorcist even without a malak."

Leo ran a hand through his hair bashfully. "It's nothing too impressive, really… I've just had a lot of experience shooting things, before I came to Midgand. A daemon can just be relegated to another target, if a much, much scarier one."

Eleanor looked at him curiously. "Oh? Really? And what, might I ask, were you shooting before you came to Midgand?"

Leo choked as he realized his slip. "Huh? What was that?" He asked, looking around in confusion. "I swear I thought I heard something. Maybe I have something in my ears…"

Eleanor gave him a flat stare.

Leo grinned apologetically. He sighed, picking at the grass sheepishly. "Sorry Eleanor… You know there are some things I just can't talk about."

The praetor sighed in response, shaking her head at her pupil's insistence at keeping secrets. "You know how suspicious this constant reluctance to speak of your past makes you to people? I've heard rumors in the mess hall that Leonex Davidson is actually some sort of outlaw from a distant land. An infamous pirate king, long forgotten, arriving in Midgand to start a new life, free from his sinful past. A fifth pirate king, so to speak."

He blinked. "You're kidding."

Eleanor laughed. "At the very least, it helps explain how weird you are."

Leo clutched at his heart. "You wound me, madam praetor! And here I had thought I had you all fooled!" He clenched his eyes in gut-wrenching emotion. "I… I admit it! I am in fact, King Davidson the fourth, the scourge of the far continent! Now! Give me all your booty!" He brandished his gauntlet blade harmlessly in the air. "For I am the fearsome pirate king! The scourge of the seven seas! Arrrrggghhhh-!"

Eleanor cringed and plonked the back of her hand against Leo's forehead, cutting him off. "Never do that again."

Leo laughed, sheathing his gauntlet blade. "What! Not convincing enough?"

She shook her head in exasperation. "I'd have an easier time believing Bienfu was once a pirate king from the far continent. You're far too clumsy for such an occupation."

"What! Blasphemy!"

Eleanor deadpanned and pointed at Leo's boots. That were untied.

She dryly noted, "I swear, I thought you would've learned to tie your shoes by now, after all those times you tripped and fell during our training sessions."

He rolled his eyes, conceding, "Alright, point taken."

As her student tied his shoes, Eleanor sighed. "At any rate, you are aware that it's not in particularly good taste to joke around about pirates these days, are you not?"

Leo nodded soberly. "Yeah. The four major pirate kings, huh? Been giving the royal navy quite the run for their money, haven't they?"

Eleanor nodded. "The world's still in bad shape, despite it all." Her eyes drifted down with emotion. "Sometimes… I just wish we had more influence. The world would be so much better off if they just worked with the Abbey!" Her fists clenched at the futility of everything.

She looked up in surprise as her student reached over and gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Come on, chin up Eleanor. You're a new primus, aren't you?" Leo grinned, reminding her of her recent promotion.

Eleanor laughed, nodding. "I suppose you're right. I should begin to act like one, shouldn't I?"

Leo leaned back in the grass, nodding sagely. "Of course I'm right. I am your elder, of course. And everyone knows the elder is the more knowledgeable one."

Eleanor glared back at her impudent student. "Is that so? Want to prove your competence against my spear work?"

Leo coughed vaguely in response, casually glancing away. Eleanor let out a satisfied self-righteous hmph.

"Anyways," Leo shook his head and said, "That reminds me. I wanted to thank you. Seriously. This pup…" He watched with a fond smile as Hawk chased a poor butterfly on the other side of the courtyard, yipping happily.

"…I needed him." Leo breathed.

Eleanor looked at him in surprise. "You like him that much? While it was true that the Abbey wasn't going to be giving you a malak for at least a while, his malak power is still very low; nearly paltry compared to some of the greater malaks out there like Bienfu."

She shifted in her seat, analytically dissecting the malak's qualities. "He can't speak, and he isn't especially good even with fire, his specialization element. He might be useful as a training tool but… I can't see him being very useful in the future."

Leo's face grew hard. "He's not a tool to me." He stated firmly.

Eleanor's eyes widened in surprise.

Leo put two fingers in his mouth and let out a sharp whistle. On the other side of the courtyard, Hawk's ears twitched. He abandoned the poor butterfly in favor of sauntering back over. Leo's smile grew as he gave the animal a good scratch behind the ears.

"This guy's a friend." Leo intoned.

_For better or for worse._

Eleanor watched the two, profoundly surprised.

"A… malak as a friend…" She whispered.

Leo sighed. "Keeping secrets like I do… it's not exactly conducive to friends here in the Abbey." He admitted. "Everyone knows that I've purposefully been keeping them all at arm's length, so they don't really get too close to me for me."

He glanced at Eleanor, "Except for you, of course. You and Bienfu are the only two souls I really know here in Loegres. Oh, and Oscar and Teresa too, I suppose." He shook his head. "But you're all praetors, always out taking ships and doing this and that, while I'm always here in Loegres, doing my usual training exercises."

Hawk whined as he butted his head up against Leo. Leo chuckled, continuing his scratches. "But now I have this guy. I won't need any other malak but him." He hugged the wolf. "He understands me too! He just can't talk back. Which is convenient, in a way." He grinned. "That means I can rant at him all I want, and he can't complain! It's very convenient."

Hawk gave a yip and gave his master a particularly slobber-filled lick square on the mouth.

"GAH!" Leo sputtered and spat in disgust. He scrambled to his feet after the fleeing malak, "You little bastard! Come here!"

Hawk let out a series of yips that sounded distinctly taunting in nature.

"Come back here you mutt! Let's see how you like being drenched in water!" Leo charged after his new malak with an open flask of water. Hawk stopped taunting and started sprinting for real.

The two charged out of the courtyard, yelling and yipping respectively, creating a huge ruckus in the hallways as they barreled through them.

Eleanor shook her head in exasperation, laughing at their actions. She calmed down and sat there, contemplatively.

"A malak as a friend. Not a tool..." Her brow furrowed. "Lord Artorius wouldn't approve…" She trailed off.

The antics of the pseudo-exorcist Leonex Davidson and his newly bonded lesser malak Hawk echoed throughout the headquarters of the Abbey, much to the dismay of the guards chasing after them.


	11. C09 - Exorcists

**Chapter 9 – Exorcists.**

Pure white snow blanketed the landscape as far as the eye could see. Uninterrupted, save for three sets of tracks trailing alongside each other. The cold sun hovering high above the travelers' heads did next to nothing for their shivering as they stumbled through the snow.

"Remind me, whose fucking idea was it t-to go for a walk in N-Northgand, again?" Leo grumbled through chattering teeth.

Bienfu muttered as he flew next to Eleanor's shoulder, "It was your idea to come with us, idiot." He then squealed as Leo nonchalantly swiped his gauntlet blade with practiced ease in his direction with a sarcastic, "oops, my hand slipped."

"Biieeen!" Bienfu cried as he dove behind Eleanor.

Hawk, trotting alongside his master, looked on with a flat stare.

Eleanor, for her part, sighed at the complaint, gritting her teeth. "While it is cold," she shook herself determinedly, "there are people here in the outlands who need as much help from the daemons as we can offer. People whom the Abbey has unfortunately chosen to de-prioritize. We must think of the people, Leo!" She urged.

Despite inherently agreeing with the statement, the ever-snarky Leo muttered, "Oh, yeah I'm thinking of people. Namely, myself. And of how fucking COLD it is!" He sneezed violently, abruptly startling Hawk who ran for cover from the spray. "Goddamnit!" He moaned, wiping the snot off his face.

Eleanor replied dryly, "Your wit seems to grow more brittle the colder you get."

"Hush." Leo grumbled good-naturedly.

The two trotted in silence, their malaks trailing behind them.

"Doesn't look like there's any daemons out here." Leo observed, taking in the snowy plains in every direction.

Eleanor shook her head. "Not necessarily. The Abbey has received plenty of reports of daemon activity in the outlands away from Hellawes. It's our job to make sure that we gauge the density of daemons in the outlands in our patrol."

Leo grunted. "Well, technically don't you mean  _your_  job? I'm still technically not an exorcist, after all."

Eleanor blinked. "…That's right. I've gotten so used to you being around that sometimes I forget the fact that you actually aren't technically enlisted in the Abbey." She looked wryly at Leo. "Despite that, you still seem keen on helping me out at every turn."

Leo shrugged. "I still haven't been able to have my chat with Lord Artorius, after all." He sighed. "Even after over two goddamn years of helping the Abbey." He muttered sourly.

Eleanor shook her head sadly. "I'm afraid that Lord Artorius has just been so occupied. Even among us praetors, seeing Lord Artorius is nearly impossible. He almost only ever interacts with the legates, and rarely with the praetor consuls. He's simply too busy with his subjects."

Leo's face hardened. "I guess he has to be." He muttered. "Forcing the people to abide by his rules must be hard work."

Eleanor's fists tightened. "Not this again! Leo! How can you say such things about the Abbey? After all the good it has done for the world?!"

Leo looked away. "Eleanor," he breathed, "sometimes… I feel you're a bit too naïve for your own good."

"What's that supposed to mean?!" Eleanor cried angrily.

Leo shook his head. "Never mind."

It wasn't his place to try and change her mind.

The two kept walking through the silence. Leo sighed as he observed the praetor strutting in front of him, a woman whom he had come to know as a good friend over the years. The woman whom had trained him in the ways of an exorcist and had helped him and Hawk become a perfectly capable daemon-killing team.

Three years since the Advent, give or take.

That was how much time had passed. He'd been training to be a pseudo-exorcist for most of that time, learning from Eleanor and training with Hawk.

And over that time… his view of the Abbey had degraded more and more.

Even now, the words of Seres the malak had uttered that night long ago rang true. The rising tide of daemons had been quelled. All of Midgand now fully recognized the Abbey as their only hope. Exorcists were hailed as heroes. The Lord Artorius was considered the world's savior. The scourge of daemonblight had been tamed. The hordes of daemons had been mostly routed into class 4 administrative zones. Patrolling exorcist praetors upheld the law of the Abbey, upon both citizen and exorcist personnel alike.

Together, the major cities of the world and even the Holy Midgand Empire itself had come to accept the Abbey's harsh rule. The message nowadays was clear.

Follow the Abbey or be left for the daemons.

Leo didn't like it. Not at all. But it wasn't like he could change it.

Over the years, he'd grown somewhat distant to Eleanor, regrettably. Her own blind faith and optimism in the cold, calculating logic of the Abbey and in the power of reason was sobering. He could only watch sadly as the friend he'd made ran about, convinced in the righteousness of her cause as well as the necessary nature of her work.

He shook his head and glanced ahead. None of this mattered.

All that mattered now, like Eleanor noted, was to help the folks in the outlands of Northgand, where they were. There was hardly anything Leo could do to change how this world worked. Not that he had any right to in the first place.

He squinted his eyes as he noticed a feature in the distance. "Hey. It looks like there's a crossroads up ahead."

Eleanor shielded her eyes from the bright sun in her attempt to see forward. "Yes, it seems that way."

Leo picked up the pace alongside Hawk and trotted forwards through the snow. Indeed, up ahead was a post pointing in three directions. The path split in two here.

Eleanor trotted up behind Leo. "Hmm." She hummed as she pulled out a map of Northgand. "So… we've been following the path leading away from Hellawes to the west…" She followed the line on the map leading to the west. "That would leave us at this crossroads here." She tapped the spot on the map, showing it to her pupil.

Leo's eyes raked analytically across the region. He noted, "So one path leads straight west to the outland town of Beardsley, while the other path leads northwest to smaller settlements along the coast, and loops back to Beardsley's southern entrance."

Eleanor nodded. "It would seem that way. Beardsley is the biggest town in the Hellawes outlands, correct?"

Leo thought back to his studies. "…Yes, if I recall correctly." He blinked. "Hey, didn't the townsfolk in Hellawes mention that the daemon Dyle's hometown was Beardsley?"

Eleanor blinked in surprise. "That's right!" She breathed. "So, it would be the best place to search for him then."

Leo nodded. "A smuggler like him would most likely find a good place to hide. If anything, you could always ask for clues."

"Me? You're not coming with me to Beardsley?"

Leo shook his head. "I'll be taking the other route." He pointed to the route leading north. "That way, the two of us can cover more ground in our patrol."

Eleanor looked worried. "But to cover that entire route, you wouldn't make it back to town by sundown! You'd have to camp outside, alone."

Leo shrugged. "Eh… think of the people, right?"

Eleanor smiled, despite herself. "…Right."

Despite Leo's apparent distaste of the Abbey's methods, he was still very much a well-meaning individual at heart. That was just who he was, all his weird quirks aside.

He nodded. "Alright. So, here's the plan." He pointed on the map. "You follow the western path to Beardsley directly, and after investigating any clues for Dyle's whereabouts, head back to Hellawes before sundown, where I'm sure a busy praetor like you will have plenty to do to regulate exorcists."

Eleanor gave a confirming nod. "There is quite a lot to manage…" she admitted.

Leo continued, "So then I, the less-important but much more charismatic pseudo-exorcist," (Eleanor rolled her eyes at this), "shall follow the path north and visit all the settlements along the beach. I'll find a place to stay in one of those villages, hopefully. If not, I'm sure Hawk here can keep me warm. And then in the morning, I'll follow the path back around to Beardsley and then head back to Hellawes and meet up with you. Sound like a plan?"

Eleanor nodded. "Okay. It sounds like a plan. Remember, if you come across a large horde of daemons-"

"Don't engage, right? Note their numbers and general movements. I got it, 'Master.'" Leo grinned. "Don't sweat it. You've taught me plenty already!"

Eleanor smiled exasperatedly. "I suppose. You still do worry me plenty with how clumsy you are, though, even after all these years of being my student."

Leo whistled to Hawk to get going and shouldered his rifle and pack, grinning. "Nonsense. I'm sure you just want to make sure I make it back alive so that you can keep me around as your future boy toy." He wriggled his eyebrows suggestively. "That's what you told me right, Bienfu?"

Eleanor's eye twitched. "BIENFU! How dare you insinuate such  _DISGUSTING THINGS_!" She shrieked at her malak, chasing after him.

"BIEN! MADAM ELEANOR! HE'S LYING! I SWEAR!" Bienfu cried as he flew desperately away from the wrathful praetor.

Leo chuckled and glanced down as his own malak. "Well, it's just the two of us, Hawk. Come on." The wolf yipped happily and took the lead, trotting ahead and following the path through the snow.

Leo drawled suggestively over his shoulder, "See you later, ' _Master_!' I'll be looking forward to your next ' _lesson._ '"

"LEO!" Eleanor cried in anger, too far away to do anything more than pout at the lewd implication.

Leo grinned. Two years later and it was still too damn easy to get under her skin.

* * *

The freezing spray of the ocean wave wafted over Leo's face, causing him to blink and wipe the water off his face with his sleeve. He stared at the sight in front of him on the rocky beach.

"How the heck did this happen?" Leo muttered to himself as he and Hawk approached a recently wrecked ship on a Northgand beach. The man noted that Hawk didn't show any sign of registering any nearby scents. He carefully observed the wreck as he approached.

"An Abbey praetor ship…" He noted as he glanced up at the sails. The golden sigil of the abbey enshrouded by ocean blue, ever present in every single town in Midgand, hung depressingly from the wrecked ship.

"…Looks just like Eleanor's ship." Leo commented to Hawk. "But how the hell did it get here? And whose ship is it? Looks like it crashed very recently judging by the lack of rot…"

He tried the foundation of the ship and deemed it safe to climb on. Leo grunted as he pulled himself up over the railing of the ship and onto the slanted main deck. Careful to not to slip on the slanted sea-drenched planks, he made his way towards the cabin. Hawk followed behind him, gingerly balancing like a cat on the angled railing of the ship.

"You know Hawk," Leo began as he tested the knob on the cabin door. "If this was Earth, a ship being lost at sea like this would've been huge news." He grunted with effort as he forced his shoulder into the door, which didn't budge. "Goddamnit… Well, what can you really expect from a society without long-range nautical radio." He noted dryly, lifting his rifle off his shoulder and raising it above his head.

CRASH!

Leo grunted with satisfaction as the wood holding the lock broke off with a solid thrust of the rifle butt. He pushed the unlocked door open and stepped into the darkened cabin, Hawk following close at his heels.

"…Man, I've been gone from Earth so long that honestly I've completely forgotten what normal should even be." He admitted.

Hawk whined sympathetically as he leapt onto the navigation table, sniffing at the instruments. Leo smiled as he watched the pup play with a roll-up map on the table. "It's hard, you know? But, I'm glad I have you though." He smiled when Hawk abandoned the map in favor of leaping off the table and rubbing his fur against his leg.

Leo laughed. "I guess I can't go completely crazy if I've got a pet to talk to. People talk to pets, right? I think that was considered normal back in my home world…"

The wolf looked up at Leo and gave his own impression of a shrug. Leo grinned. "Ah, who cares. Who knows what normal is." He sobered abruptly. "…It's not like I'll be headed back there anytime soon…" He mentally activated his augmented reality vision and glanced at the progress bar.

85.03%.

He groaned. "…Almost 3 whole years and just an 85 percent charge." He sighed, shaking his head. "Seriously. How could a world be so damn low in background radiation?!" He exclaimed.

Hawk gave him a firm nudge.

Leo shook his head, clearing away the otherworldly thoughts. He grinned down at the malak. "…You're right." He agreed. "It is what it is. Thanks, bud."

Hawk yipped happily in response.

Together, man and malak went back to investigating the cabin.

"…Ah! Found the manifest." Leo announced. "Let's see… This ship is the property of… Exorcist Praetor Oscar Dragonia?!" The man cried out in shock. Hawk whined in distress at the revelation.

"How the hell did his ship end up shipwrecked in Northgand? I thought he was stationed in Titania!" He shook his head in amazement. "I saw the man only two weeks ago! What the hell…?" He glanced around again, taking everything in with the new context.

"Was he on this ship then, when it crashed? …But then why was the cabin locked if that was the case?"

Hawk whined again. Leo nodded. "Yeah, I know. This isn't normal." Finished, the man turned around and walked back out onto the deck.

"Where'd the survivors go? I see no bodies…" Leo murmured, surveying the crash site on the beach. "…Ah!" He leapt over the railing and back down onto the beach. Hawk disappeared in a flash of green light and appeared again on the ground at his side.

"Look Hawk! These are all footprints!" He pointed at a collection of vague depressions in the snow. "Looks like they're a day old though, judging by the fact that they've been covered by last night's snowfall." He urged the malak over. "Here. Try to get a scent. Might as well get some clues while we're out here."

Hawk did his best to sniff around. Leo waited patiently, gazing around the crash site. "…How exactly do you crash a ship this badly?" He wondered aloud. "Did they not have enough crew to have a spotter or something? Or were they all asleep at the wheel?"

Hawk suddenly let out a confirming bark. Leo nodded. "Alright, I think we're done here. Lead the way bud."

Hawk gave his own version of a nod and began trotting away from the wreck. Leo studied the vector he walked on. "In the direction of Hellawes and Beardsley." He remarked. "Alright, nice. I was just about to head back anyways."

With one last glance back at the mysterious shipwreck, Leo shrugged and began to follow Hawk at a distance, studying his own map. He marked the position of the wreck on the western end of Northgand.

He mentally berated himself for letting his thoughts stray too far towards Earth once more. All he could do was move forward and do what he could in the moment.

It was just another day.

* * *

Leo was jolted out of his contemplations a few hours of walking later when Hawk suddenly let out a fierce growl and charged ahead.

A scream from far away rang out, breaking the silence of the snowy mountain region. Leo swore and kicked into a run, following on Hawk's heels, reaching around for his rifle.

In the distance, he registered a large walled town. Beardsley, he realized. A town of outcasts. People the Abbey had deemed unworthy of their attention and protection. Excess baggage. The Abbey had declared their town and the outlands surrounding it unworthy of regular patrols, unlike the major cities like Hellawes. The people out here were to be abandoned to the rampant daemons, all in the interest of reason.

But Leo couldn't care less for the Abbey's reason.

Eyes zeroing in on the person in distress, evidently a girl running from a werewolf daemon towards the city gates, Leo quickly judged the distance and the firing angle and dove forward into the snow, rifle held high. Recovering from the impact, he snapped the cold wooden rifle stock to his cheek and adjusted the sights according to the distance.

 _Distance from target… approximately 50 yards…_   _Wind… negligible._

He caught his breath and steadied it. He tried his best to keep his heart rate down. He ignored the fact that the daemon was getting alarmingly close to the poor girl and focused on leading the sight picture slightly ahead of the target. Any closer now and the daemon would be too close to the girl to allow for a safe shot. Now or never.

He exhaled.

CRACK!

To Leo, it felt as if the bullet took hours to fly.

He'd done his best to guide it, now he could only pray that his efforts would bear fruit. He watched the tracer on the round with bated breath. In reality, it took only milliseconds for the round to travel at supersonic speeds to its destination.

THWACK!

The rewarding sound of the bullet landing soundly on the center mass of the werewolf daemon resounded throughout the valley. The bullet caught the wolf right as it was moving forward, tearing straight through its hide and exiting in a vicious entry wound, landing in the ground behind the daemon in a blast of snow. The daemon tumbled to the snow, howling in pain as it died.

Leo breathed a sigh of relief. His eyes turned to the girl, frozen in shock as the monster that had been about to kill her was now suddenly dead at her feet.

A nearby howl jolted Leo back to Midgand. He cursed and stumbled to his feet, cocking his rifle and letting the shell land softly in the snow to be forgotten. He lurched forward, charging towards the girl still standing there by the downed daemon in shock.

"You there! Run!" Leo yelled, hoping his voice would carry.

The girl noticed the man sprinting at her with shock. Leo waved at her frantically as he ran, calling, "Get back to town!"

The girl's gaze snapped over to the forest across from town as a pack of daemons came charging out at her. She let out a scream and took off, following the stranger's advice. Leo swore as a flying hawk daemon dove towards the girl.

He wasn't going to be able to make that shot and still get to her on time to protect her from the werewolves.

Hawk made his presence known with a howl as he leapt upwards in the air in front of the flying daemon, a malak arte forming in front of him. Caught completely off-guard, the daemon took the vicious fireball in full force, cawing in pain as it fell into a burning free-fall. It crashed like a meteor into the sizzling snow below.

Leo promptly arrived and stabbed his gauntlet blade into the smoldering mess, receiving a death knell in response. Sheathing his bloody blade, he quickly raised his rifle and got to work defending the town.

CRACK!

A daemon went down in the snow. Five more to go.

He made a quick glance over his shoulder. The girl had made it safely through the gates. He grimaced as he noticed a sorry excuse of a militia pour out of the gates, fidgeting unfamiliarly with hard-to-find malak-forged metal weapons. He saw their weary glances his way. He gave them a nod.

He turned back to the threat calling, "Keep the town safe!" He cocked his rifle and lifted it once more.

CRACK!

A werewolf took the bullet to the shoulder but managed to continue its charge. Leo cranked his weapon and inserted fresh bullets into the feed. "Hawk!" He prompted as he worked. His malak yipped in response.

A bright arte circle formed underneath the pup. Hawk howled as he sent another flaming fireball hurtling towards the weakened daemon. The arte landed, violently colliding with the charging daemon and sending it spinning into the snow, dead. Four more to go.

And then they were upon them. Leo cursed as he extended his gauntlet blade and let go of his rifle, letting the strap keep it from falling into the snow.

He leapt to the side, dodging the first snarling beast to reach him and retaliated with a prompt slice to the back of the calves. It howled in fury and pain as it stumbled on its sliced tendons. Leo promptly spun around and beheaded it. Three more to go.

In one fluid movement following up from his last slice, Leo sheathed his blade while grabbing his rifle and without bothering to aim, fired point-blank at another charging daemon.

CRACK!

The round landed soundly between the eyes. Two more to go.

Leo cursed, however, as the now limp body crashed into him with all the force of a boulder. The two bodies landed, the dead werewolf pinning the other. Groaning in pain due to the crushing weight, Leo managed to free his rifle from underneath the daemon's body and cock it, just in time to raise it at a daemon swiping its claws at Hawk.

CRACK!

The daemon winced as a round tore into his flank. Hawk capitalized on the opportunity by leaping upwards and tearing the monster's throat out, painting the snow red. One more.

Where was it?

Leo cursed as he turned his head around and found the daemon decimating the militia at the gates, the villagers trying admirably but foolishly to keep the daemon out of their homes and away from their families.

There was no direct line of fire that wasn't endangering the villagers, whom were ironically and unknowingly hindering the survival of their comrades. Still pinned down, Leo called to his malak, "Alright, let's do this one!" He cocked and aimed the gun like an artillery cannon 45 degrees above the raging daemon. Hawk yipped in affirmative.

Leo called, "Homing Fire!"

CRACK!

Leo fired his weapon up into the sky. Hawk howled at the same time, imbuing the regular round with a considerable amount of mana, obtaining full control of the round's trajectory and pushing it downwards, towards the daemon surrounded by villagers.

It never knew what hit it.

THWACK!

The villagers all recoiled in surprise as the daemon they were fighting suddenly burst into brilliant flame. It howled in agony and pain, wheeling around frantically and lashing out wildly against everything and everyone. All the villagers backed away instinctively from the howling ball of fire in their midst.

And then a man ran into the circle of people and shoved a sword directly through the flames into the daemon's head.

"And that… makes zero." Leo panted with exertion as he extracted the sword from the burning mess of fur that was the daemon he'd killed. He grinned as Hawk trotted up to him, panting. "Nice one there, Hawk." He commented genuinely. "I'm glad we practiced that arte so much. Sorry for tiring you out, bud."

The lesser malak yipped tiredly and nudged his master affectionately.

Leo smiled, catching his breath. He was so proud of how far Hawk and himself had come when it came to fighting daemons. Lesser malak status be damned, he would never trade Hawk for another malak partner.

They were a damn team.

Leo suddenly became aware of the villagers surrounding him, all staring at him with guarded suspicion. "Uh, hi guys. Good job with defending the village. Admirable efforts." He complemented, hoping to get the hostility in the air down.

A man pushed his way forward, eyeing Leo with open distrust. He asked gruffly, "You with the Abbey?" It was a simple, harsh question that efficiently embodied the tension between the villagers and the malak-wielding stranger.

Leo understood. The Abbey hadn't been exactly kind to these people.

He shook his head, honestly. "Not quite. I was trained to be an exorcist, but I'm not officially affiliated."

The man reacted with confusion. "I wasn't aware the Abbey did such things."

Leo shrugged, cocking his gun and refilling it with ammo. "I'm a special case. Anyways the point is," he clicked the safety on, "you can rest assured. I'm hardly a supporter of their ways." He met the man's eyes with determination, hoping to convey his sincerity.

The man eyed Leo for a bit longer, before finally nodding to himself. "…Alright. Anyone who's not with the Abbey is a good person in our eyes." He offered a hand. "Thanks for helping us out."

Leo grinned in response, noting that all the other villagers relaxing to some degree at this action. He shook the man's hand. "Not a problem. Helping folks like you all is why I learned exorcist artes." He admitted. "Say, has my mentor been through here? She was supposed to stop by here yesterday and then return to Hellawes afterwards."

The villager's expression clouded. "You mean that Eleanor lady? She's your mentor, huh?"

Leo gave an empathetic grimace. "Yeah… I know." He grinned sheepishly. "She's quite the… naïve person, isn't she?"

The villagers all gathered around Leo chuckled. The leader in particular gave a rough snort. "Man, you can say that again. She came up all around here, just strolling in like it was nobody's business, and started asking questions about that whoreson Dyle." He eyed Leo suspiciously. "You ain't going to be doing the same thing, are ya?"

Leo shook his head. "Like I said, I'm not part of the Abbey, so I have no obligation to help in their searches. I'm just following Eleanor and helping her out wherever I can. She did save my life a few years ago after all, so I figured that I'd repay it by helping her in her patrols. Not to mention she's probably the best exorcist I know in terms of dedication and honesty."

The man shrugged. "I suppose not all exorcists are that bad." His eyes narrowed. "Still, you let her know that she's not welcome here. None of the exorcists are. Not after the Abbey banished us all for not following their blasted rule."

Leo nodded in acceptance. "I will. And I'm sorry that you all had to deal with the ugly side of the Abbey. But since I'm not technically an Abbey exorcist… could I possibly…?" He trailed off, gesturing hopefully at the open gate.

The man considered him again. "…Perhaps." He relented. "But I'll ask you this. What do you need to do in our village in the middle of nowhere?"

A reasonable question. Leo answered, "I need to visit your blacksmith and forge some more projectiles." He gestured at his weapon slung behind his shoulder. "I wouldn't mind buying a few things from your local merchants too. I'll be out of town and headed back to Hellawes within a few hours, I promise."

The man glanced curiously at his weapon but said nothing. It wasn't his business, after all. "Okay then, stranger. A few hours it is. The weapons shop is down the main road in the plaza. Since you went through all the effort to save our town and that kid, I suppose I can make an exception just for you."

He gave a warm grin, finally forgoing the suspicion. "Welcome to our little frozen corner of hell." He greeted.

"It's good to be here." Leo gratefully replied. He promised again, "I'll be out of here soon."

He suddenly had a thought. "By the way, a word of advice." Leo gestured generally to the militia around him. "When daemons attack, don't just charge them all at once. Instead, form small squads with designated squad leaders to attack individual daemons, and to act as reserves to stay behind in case other squads get overwhelmed. That way, the collective mind becomes individual minds that can adjust to the situation accordingly and keep the encounter similar to a battle rather than a prison riot. Just a bit of wisdom I picked up from the Abbey." Leo shrugged. "Food for thought."

The man nodded appreciatively. "Not a bad idea at all. Thanks." He raised an eyebrow. "You… really don't mind the fact that we're the Abbey's miscreants, do you?"

Leo shook his head. "Trust me." He intoned. "I despise the Abbey's notion of reason. I'm just here to help out where I can."

The man nodded respectfully. "I appreciate that. I honestly do. It's reassuring to know there are at least a few souls out there that the Abbey doesn't have under their spell."

Leo grunted in agreement. "It's a sad state of affairs." He agreed. "But what are you going to do about it, huh?"

The man laughed humorlessly. "Nothing, naturally."

Leo sighed. "Naturally. Thanks for your help. Good luck defending the village."

The militia leader gave the man a mock exorcist salute. "Safe travels."

Leo waved goodbye and turned away, walking away from the militia and into the city with Hawk trotting at his side. "To think that the Abbey would simply cut off these people from society like a cancer…" Leo muttered. Hawk gave a sympathetic whine.

As he walked through the empty main street, he suddenly noticed he had a shadow following him out of the corner of his eye. He came to an abrupt halt and turned around.

"Hey! Come on out, I don't bite!" He called out.

Slowly, hesitantly, a little girl crept out from behind a corner and tentatively approached the two.

"Oh hey. You're the one who was being attacked in the first place." Leo observed warmly.

The girl nodded shyly. "Y-yeah… Uh… I wanted… to say… t-that is… Th-Thank you sir exorcist!" The girl pushed out of her mouth, clutching her hands together.

Leo grinned. "It's no problem. It's what I do." He had a thought. "Say. Would you like to come meet the malak who saved your life earlier? His name's Hawk!" He kneeled down and scratched Hawk's belly, who lolled out his tongue and panted like a dog.

Leo grinned as the girl's face melted at the sight.

"C-c-can I?" The girl asked.

"You sure can! He's a very nice and friendly malak. Come on over!" Leo beckoned.

The girl hesitantly shuffled over to the wolf who laid on the ground as docilely as possible. The girl giggled as she ran her fingers through Hawk's grey fur. "He's so soft! I didn't know there were malakhim like him! Thank you for saving my life, Hawk!" She cooed, all nervousness instantly forgotten.

Leo's smile grew. "Try scratching him behind his ears. He likes that." He suggested. The girl did just that, and Hawk growled in pleasure. The girl giggled and used both hands to scratch both ears.

After a while, the girl looked up to him and said, "You know what, mister exorcist? You're not as scary as the other ones."

Leo's smile faded. "The… other exorcists, huh?"

The girl nodded. "The other exorcists…" She looked down sadly, her scratches becoming mechanical. Her face scrunched up. "The other exorcists who threw me and mom out of Hellawes were mean. They said that we were worthless beggars, and that we deserved to die out in the snow for betterment of mankind."

Her eyes began to water. "And then…" She hiccupped. "And then just a few weeks after we moved here, a daemon killed my mom!" Tears fell down her face as she cried, the wounds still fresh.

Leo looked on with sadness. Here it was again. Another tale of misery inflicted by the Abbey's reason. Hawk whined with distress and licked at the tears on the girl's face. The girl gave a wet laugh, hugging the malak fiercely.

"I miss her so much…" she whispered.

But then, Leo was impressed by how her expression hardened. She glared up determinedly at the man. "But I'm not going to give up!" She declared. "I'm going to live and prove those meanie exorcists wrong! That we  _do_ deserve to live!" She stood up fiercely. "That's why… That's why I wanted to thank you, mister exorcist. For saving my life. Because if I'd died, mom would've been disappointed in me!"

Leo smiled kindly back at the brave girl. "…You're strong, kid." He patted her head. "You're welcome. I wish you all the luck in the world and hope that you live to grow old and wise, just to prove those dumb exorcists wrong."

The girl nodded firmly. "Thank you, mister. Thank you, so, so much." She took a step back. "And I'm sorry sir exorcist, but I have to go now. My new father needs me back home before noon."

Leo nodded sagely. "Best not to keep him waiting, huh?"

The girl shook her head wildly. "Never! Thanks again, sir exorcist! And thank you, Hawk!" She gave the wolf one last fond nuzzle on the head. "Goodbye!" She called over her shoulder as she ran off.

"Goodbye!" Leo called back, waving. He got to his feet, smiling warmly.

Honestly. The Abbey could take their reason and go fuck themselves with it.

"Come on, Hawk. We've got shopping to do." He said to his malak, turning around and walking down the dilapidated street.

* * *

CLANG!

"I say, mister, you're remarkably good at crafting. I daresay you're better than both me and my father combined!"

Leo grinned at the blacksmith over his shoulder before returning back to his task of fine-adjusting the shape of the freshly-casted molten-hot bullet he'd just crafted.

"It just comes naturally." Leo breathed, swiping the hammer down at just the right angle.

CLANG!

Leo blew on the freshly molded bullet and lifted it with iron tongs, examining it with a practiced eye. Evidently satisfied, he held the bullet out to his malak lounging on a nearby table. "All set, If you would, Hawk."

The malak yipped and concentrated. A brilliant sheen of bright light engulfed the metal held between the tongs for a split second, basking the interior of the forge with white light, before dissipating, leaving a fresh silver malak-infused bullet held in the tongs.

The blacksmith muttered under his breath, "Amazing. So that's how the Abbey made those daemon-killing weapons."

Leo nodded, placing the bullet in with the rest of the other bullets he'd already crafted in a cooling vat. He explained, "Not every malak has the ability to infuse metal with anti-daemon properties, but it can be taught. Hawk here spent a lot of time and effort learning how to turn regular old metal into the stuff I use for my cannon."

The blacksmith shook his head in wonder. "Gods, you really are a genius, aren't you?"

Leo shook his head abashedly. "N-not at all. It's just how I survive in this world. Other people use their strength or agility to defeat daemons. I just use plain 'ol human ingenuity. Nothing more, nothing less. Thanks Hawk."

The malak yipped in response.

Leo grunted as he stood up, popping his back. "Anyhoo," he spoke to the blacksmith, "I'm glad you came back just now; I just finished! You can have your forge back now."

The blacksmith blinked. "I thought you said you'd want the forge for three hours? It's only been one and a half."

Leo shook his head and gestured to his malak. "I underestimated how tired my malak would be after some intensive artes we used at the gate battle. I don't want to tire him out by forging too much at once."

Hawk whined in protest.

Leo gave him a glare. "No, you're tired, and that's final. Hush. Go back to resting." The malak grumbled, reluctantly dissipating and returning back into his vessel.

The blacksmith blinked as the wolf disappeared into the man's body. He shook his head in disbelief. "I swear man, you're the strangest exorcist I've ever met. You aren't in favor of the Abbey's rule, you don't spout the word 'reason' everywhere you go, and you don't treat your malakhim like trash. In all my years working in Hellawes after the Advent before I was banished, I've never seen an exorcist like you before."

Leo shrugged, collecting the newly made bullets. "Hey, what can I say. I'm an island of virtue in this sea of madness."

The blacksmith chuckled. "Right you are you cocky bastard." He shook his head, sticking a thumb over his shoulder. "Now get on 'outta here." He ordered roughly.

Leo blinked. "But wait, didn't we agree on a pri-"

The blacksmith swiftly cut Leo off. "No can do, buddy. I just heard that a certain exorcist in town saved my brother's adopted daughter." He grinned. "We Anti-Abbey folk need to stick together, ya know?"

Leo valiantly tried to protest. "But I took up your forge for a whole hour and a half! The money you must've lost in that time-"

"Could not possibly amount to any sort of compensation for how devastated my brother would've been if the only good thing in his life had been killed by daemons." The blacksmith gave the man a thankful grin. "Now get! I've got money to make."

Leo sighed fondly. "…And the Abbey says you're all worthless humans not worth protecting."

The blacksmith gave a belly laugh. "Damn right, we're not! We protect each other, and that's all that matters. Farewell, good-hearted exorcist!" He gave a wave.

Leo waved as he stepped out of the sweltering forge and into the shockingly freezing open air. Shivering, he glanced up at the sky. It was a little bit after noon, it seemed. He had plenty of time to make it back to Hellawes if he left now.

He checked his pack. Gels, the freshly crafted bullets (that still needed assembly with the crafted casings and mixed gunpowder), bandages, food, and water. He was all set. Time to head back.

He sighed, contemplating the state of this town as he walked back to the gates.

It was times like these where he just had to feel bad about the state of this world. On one hand, the suffering of these people was horrific. On the other hand, the suffering of people as a whole before the Advent was even worse. It was a lose-lose situation, honestly. It was all he could do to help where he could, in the time that he had.

As he approached the front gates, he was confused to find a large crowd gathered at the entrance to the town. Leo turned to a random bystander nearby. "What's going on?" He asked.

The woman replied in shock, "Smoke… rising from the direction of Hellawes." Leo gaped.

"Excuse me, coming through! Please! I'm leaving town! Excuse me!" Leo called as he pushed his way through the crowd of people gawking at the spectacle. Gasping for breath as he pulled himself out of the crowds, Leo's blood quickly ran cold as he took in the sight in the distance.

A thick column of smoke rising from behind the distant hills, black as night. A pillar that thick, visible even all the way over from Beardsley could mean only one thing.

Hellawes was being razed.


	12. C10 - Smoke

**Chapter 10 – Smoke.**

"Halt! The city of Hellawes is currently in the state of complete martial law. Any travelers entering the city must leave at once or be driven away by force!"

Leo winced at the threat as he stopped some ways away from the main gate to Hellawes. The smell of sulfur permeated the land around the town. Trickles of smoke still rose behind the tall stone walls. Leo yelled back at the extremely on-edge guards, "What the hell happened here?!"

"A daemon raid on the town." A soldier responded bitterly.

"What?!" Leo gaped.

He shook his head in disbelief. He had to get in that city, martial law or not. He pulled out his paperwork stamped with the sigil of the Abbey. "My name is Leonex Davidson. I am an official friend of the Abbey and the pupil of Exorcist Praetor Eleanor Hume. Please, let me through. I am expected."

It was astounding just how quickly the officer's demeanor changed. "Oh, Mister Davidson! I apologize for not recognizing you. Of course, you may enter." He waved at the soldiers to open the gates slightly.

Leo nodded and trotted forwards towards the opening gate. He stopped in front of the officer whom had spoken and asked urgently, "How could daemons wreak so much havoc on this town? Weren't there two exorcist praetors stationed here including my master, along with dozens of orderlies?"

The officer hung his head in defeat. "I admit that I don't know much sir, but from what I know for sure, a group of daemons broke out of the high security prison in Titania and landed on Northgand. They then wound up here and lit the stores of flamestone in the storehouses, using the distraction to steal a ship and escape."

Leo stared. "How in the world…?" He breathed. "Were Teresa and Eleanor around to stop them?"

The officer shook his head. "Lady Teresa and Madam Eleanor were both attacked by the daemons and regrettably, defeated."

"…You're telling me that this group of daemons defeated  _two exorcist praetors_? A Primus and a Consul to boot?" Leo was aghast. Worry flooded his eyes. "Are they okay?! Have you gotten word about my master's condition?"

The officer nodded. "Lady Teresa and Madam Eleanor are both alive and well and are currently recovering at the local sanctuary to Innominat which has been temporarily designated as a clinic to treat the scores of wounded."

He turned frank. "It's… an utter calamity." The man hung his head in defeat. "Thanks to those daemons, Hellawes is… finished. All our stores of flamestone are completely destroyed. The docks are in shambles, and a number of valuable vessels were caught up in the blaze and sunk. The whole port is blocked by wreckage and will take precious weeks to clear. There is no way we can possibly make it through the next winter."

The officer sighed. "I… honestly don't know what to do anymore, sir. I don't believe the city will be able to afford the garrison in the city, and that would mean I'll be out of work. I'm not sure how I would be able to feed my family if that were to occur." He shook his head in dismay. "None of us do. It's likely a good number of the people living in this city today won't live to see the spring because of this."

Leo was speechless.

Despite it all, despite all of the Abbey's posturing and harsh ruling, despite the hundreds of exorcists stationed in the city, the largest city in Northgand had effectively been ruined in one fell swoop, it's primary source of income and lifeblood instantly cut.

Leo could only give the officer paltry encouragement and wishes of good fortune. "I'm sorry, man. All we can do is keep our chins up."

The officer nodded dejectedly. "I appreciate the sentiment at the very least, sir. I hope one day I can raise my family in peace without fear of their lives being torn apart by raging monsters that ravage the land for little reason other than sadistic joy." He spat hatefully into the snow.

Leo nodded empathetically. "You and me both."

With that said, he turned and stepped through the main gates.

And into a nightmare.

* * *

Claw marks.

Made from an appendage the size of a man, the marks were gouged here and there in an evidently extraordinarily violent battle in the main square. Leo gagged as he recognized the stains of blood and gore smearing the walls and floors, driven into the very stones by the claws that had smashed through the exorcists whose blood stained the square.

He glanced at the morbid layout of bodies in the corner of the square, hurriedly arranged and placed underneath blue sheets emblazoned with the golden symbol of the Abbey in a paltry show for what these brave men died for. There must've been upwards of 30 or 40 corpses.

He turned and glanced over at the other side of the square where groans and moaning and crying could be heard.

The church of Innominat had been reduced to a place of despair and bloodshed where vain attempts at healing was taking place. The sanctuary buzzed with doctors scrambling to try and handle the hundreds of non-fatal casualties induced by both the blaze and the daemons that had set it off. More bodies lay at the feet of the church underneath white blankets; lives of dozens of civilians whom couldn't've been saved.

Leo coughed and waved a hand in front of his face. The sharp acidic tang of flamestone burnt his nostrils; the haze of the smoldering warehouses still lingered in the streets, taunting its residents with the constant reminder that their way of life was very much over.

Nobody else walked the streets but him and patrolling exorcists and soldiers whom were all very much on edge. The shell-shocked citizens were all locked in their houses by decree of the Abbey. There were still a few fires dotted around the docks being put out by exorcist artes slowly, but it was a paltry effort. Everyone knew that the docks, the storehouses, the town; all of it was ruined.

Leo had no words for the amount of sheer devastation surrounding him. To think this was all because of a few daemons…!

This town would never be the same again.

He curled his fingers. Despite how much he despised the Abbey's twisted lines of reason, he could not deny just how much more despicable the daemon menace was in comparison. That was why he still worked with Eleanor. Because a shield that burned your hand when held was still better than no shield at all in the face of wanton destruction.

He set off towards the sanctuary, towards the screams of pain and agony.

* * *

"Okay. So, after everything you've told me, let me get this straight. I leave you for one day and you go ahead and get your ass kicked by a daemon who escaped a high security prison, maimed Oscar, torched the whole damn city, stole a merchant frigate in the process, kidnapped a fucking praetor's malak, and above all, called you a 'Crybaby Exorcist?!'"

Eleanor's cheeks burned as she glared at Leo, irritated beyond belief that she had let that little detail slip. "For your information, such a childish name was based completely on a lie! She was simply trying to get under my skin! And I'll have you know it didn't work!"

Leo grinned as he leaned against the stone wall surrounding the burnt Hellawes port. "Funny," he drawled, "I think it suits you."

WHACK!

"OW! Goddamnit woman! What do you call 'this' if not under your skin?!" Leo whined as he furiously rubbed his shoulder in pain, having been whacked by the non-lethal end of Eleanor's spear.

She let out smartly, "I call it discipline."

Leo muttered sourly under his breath, "Violent sadistic daemon…" At Eleanor's glare, he sputtered, "I-I mean n-nothing!" He jumped back waving his hands disarmingly.

Eleanor shook her head and turned back to their original object of interest.

She let out softly, "But really… This is all so horrible… How could there be such evil creatures that would do something like this…?"

Leo shook his head in disbelief. "Don't ask me. This is just how the world is, I guess."

The two sighed, the moment of levity gone in a flash in front of the remains of the primary flamestone warehouse which was now nothing more but a pile of smoldering rubble. Leo turned around and observed the rest of the port. It all looked so horrifically mangled that it was honestly hard to imagine this town ever getting back on its feet.

His heart broke for the residents of the town.

"You there! Halt!"

Leo and Eleanor turned their heads in surprise as a boy around 8 years old charged up to them, a pair of guards hot on his heels. The boy made a beeline for them, heedless of the debris he had to scramble over.

"Madam Praetor! Ma'am!" The boy cried as he ran towards them, ignoring the cries of the guards behind him to stop.

"Stop, in the name of the Abbey! This town is under martial law! Get back here!"

Eleanor swiftly called out, "Let the boy come!" The guards instantly grounded to a halt at the command. The boy, on the other hand, continued his frantic charge directly up to the exorcist praetor.

"What is it, son?" Leo asked the boy kindly as he came to a shaky stop in front of the two in the ruins of the warehouse.

The boy panted, "Madam Praetor-Ma'am," He caught his breath, lifting his chin up determinedly at Eleanor. "Ma'am, you've got to help me!"

Eleanor kneeled down to the kid's level. She replied genuinely, "I can try my best. What do you need me to do?"

The boy glanced warily over his shoulder at the guards walking over. Eleanor called, "Don't worry about this one. I'll make sure he gets home safe."

"Thank you, ma'am." The guards panted in relief, giving salutes and leaving the three of them alone.

The boy shook his head and got back to his point. "Madam Praetor, you've got to help my father!"

Eleanor asked urgently, "Well, where is he? What's wrong with him?"

"I don't know!" The boy fervently answered. "The doctors won't tell me anything. Nobody will tell me anything! I saw them take my daddy out into the square and put him under the thinnest blanket possible and just leave him there. You've gotta help him!" He pleaded. "Please! Let the doctors know that he'll catch a cold out there! Make them understand!"

Eleanor and Leo both let out shaky breaths. Eleanor grasped vainly for any words, for any possible consolation for this boy whose life had unknowingly just been shattered underneath his feet.

Leo swallowed and put on his nicest smile he could manage, kneeling down next to Eleanor. "Hey, kid. What's your name?" He prompted gently.

The boy glanced at him as if noticing him for the first time. "Who're you?" He asked guardedly.

Leo introduced himself, "I'm Leo. Madam Praetor here," he waved at Eleanor, "is my teacher and good friend."

The boy blinked. "So… does that make you an exorcist orderly?"

Leo nodded. "It does."

The boy brightened. "Oh! Just like daddy! Do you know him? He's a strong exorcist, who can vanquish any daemon!" He pumped his fist enthusiastically into the air.

Leo fought hard to keep his face emotionless. "I don't think so. I've been training under my teacher for the past few years." He shook his head. "Anyways, what's your name?"

The boy remembered himself. "Oh! That's right! Sorry, sir! My name's Jason." His back stiffened as he introduced himself to the respectable exorcist.

Leo nodded. "Okay, Jason. Do you possibly have any other relatives in the city? Any close friends?"

The boy thought carefully. "Hm… Well I guess my auntie, and also my friend Alice!" He cocked his head in confusion. "But… what does that have to do with helping my daddy?"

Eleanor, having collected herself, responded with determination, "Because it's not safe out here, Jason." She shook herself. "There are still fires burning around town and the air isn't safe for little boys like you. We ask because we need you to be brave, okay?"

Jason nodded hesitantly. "Oh… I guess I could go to Alice's house… but what about my daddy?!" He cried.

Leo stood up determinedly. "The two of us will go and check on your dad and make sure he's as comfortable as he can possibly be." He smiled a smile that didn't reach his eyes. "It's a promise."

The boy leapt to his feet. "Okay! I trust you guys! Alright. I'll be brave and go to Alice's house." He nodded to himself. "I'm sure you guys can set the doctors right. You're exorcists, after all!"

Eleanor's fists clenched. "That's right." She let out in a wavering voice. "We exorcists help people…"

"Thank you, Madam Praetor! Sir Orderly!" The boy waved as he ran off, headed to the residential district.

The moment the boy had disappeared from sight, Eleanor crumpled to the ground. At the same time Leo let out a breath of dismay. Tears fell from his teacher's eyes, her fists curled in helplessness.

"So much tragedy… Will it not end?!" She cried out.

Leo put a knowing hand softly on her shoulder. He shook his head in sadness. "This is just how the world is." He muttered.

Eleanor squeezed her eyes shut. "Damn. Damn those daemons!"

* * *

The doctor shook his head in sorrow. "I'm afraid Jason's father was murdered in cold blood by the clawed daemon during the raid. He died on the spot from blood loss."

Eleanor and Leo sighed together in dismay. Leo admitted, "We expected as much."

The doctor hung his head. "I'm afraid that none of the staff here could find the will to let the poor boy know what had really happened. We're all cowards, I'm afraid."

Leo shook his head and patted the man on the shoulder encouragingly. "No, you did what you could. Putting off the tears for a bit might be what this town needs for now. You did good. Keep doing what you're doing."

"Thank you, sir. Ma'am." The doctor nodded in thanks and turned away from the two of them back to his work.

Eleanor sighed as she glanced around their surroundings. The interior of the church was absolutely permeated with the stench of the sick and wounded. "Such suffering…" She breathed.

A snowstorm was brewing outside the open windows, clashing with the howling cries and moans of agony all around them. It was a world of pain and misery, caused solely by a pack of inhuman monsters.

It was utterly horrific.

"Eleanor! Leo!" The two turned their heads at the call, seeing Teresa Linares walking towards them down the aisle of the sick laid on the floor of the sanctuary.

Eleanor quickly gave a salute. "Lady Teresa!"

Leo himself nodded in greeting. "Hey, Teresa."

Teresa gave both of them a sober nod. "I need the two of you to aid in clearing the debris from the port, through whatever means necessary. We need the port cleared as soon as possible for aid ships to arrive. The stores of medicine are already running dangerously low."

Eleanor asked with worry, "But Teresa! What about your own wounds?" She glanced at the bandages wrapping around the Consul's form.

Teresa shook her head. "It's nothing. What matters is getting this town back on its feet after those daemons…" She clenched her fists in fury.

Leo noted sympathetically, "To think that daemons could pull of this feat, burning down the town, maiming Oscar, and even stealing the malak of a Praetor…"

Teresa's fury was palatable. Both Leo and Eleanor were well aware of how close she and her brother were. But she suppressed her anger admirably and shook her head. "Nevertheless, we must let them go." She let out through clenched teeth. "The swift restoration of Hellawes before the next harsh winter comes first. For that is the curse of good folk; to clean up after the wicked."

She looked at the two of them, her expression softening. "Despite it all, it's good to have the two of you here. Eleanor, Leo. Thank you both for helping."

Eleanor shook her head, waving off the gratitude. "It was simply pure luck that meant the two of us were in the area patrolling when Hellawes was attacked. Any exorcist worth his or her salt would've done the same thing."

Leo grinned. "Yeah. Don't sweat it, Teresa. There's no way we'd leave you to deal with this mess alone."

Teresa nodded. "Nevertheless, I thank you."

Suddenly, the Consul let out a gasp of shock in a rare display of emotion from the normally stone-cold exorcist.

"L-Lord Artorius!" She exclaimed.

Leo's eyes widened.

"What?!" He gasped as he twisted around to the doorway.

Indeed, there, striding powerfully through the doors from the storm, was a familiar face from the past. The face of the man whose name had haunted Leo for three years. The man Seres warned him about.

The head of the heartless Abbey.

Arthur.

"Lord Artorius!" Eleanor greeted, promptly giving a salute.

The entire sanctuary froze at the unexpected entry of Midgand's savior into their midst. Murmurings rose as doctors and sickly alike respectfully acknowledged their Lord's presence.

The Savior.

Artorius himself inclined his head to the greetings and then fixed his eyes on the three exorcists in the room. His eyes lingered on Leo, but he made no comment. Instead, the man strode up to the three of them and addressed Teresa.

"Report." The command was simple.

Teresa shook herself out of the shock and was reminded of her place. She let out succinctly, "Lord Artorius. Hellawes has been ruined by a group of daemons. The stores of flamestone have been completely and utterly desecrated. Out of the 14 major warehouses of the city, only two remain standing. All of the major docks and wharves have been buried and blocked with debris. Most of the fires have been put out, however, flamestone-induced flames are more resilient than regular conflagrations and require intense effort to put out even with the use of malaks. The entire population has been placed under martial law for their safety and the security has been tightened around the city. No one is allowed in or out of the city who is not affiliated with the Abbey or the Royal Army."

The man nodded simply. "And the daemons?"

Teresa shook her head. "They escaped, having stolen a ship before the port was completely engulfed in flames." She wavered. "Both Eleanor and I attempted to apprehend the daemon at the docks, however the daemon proved to be… more resilient than we expected. I lost one of my malakhim to it."

Artorius's eyes were hard. Teresa winced at the disapproval radiating from her superior. "This will not do, Teresa. The Abbey was not built as a paltry defense force to be torn apart by a handful of daemons." His eyes were cold. "I expect to speak with you soon."

Teresa nodded shakily. "…I accept full responsibility."

"Good."

With that, the man turned swiftly away. He said over his shoulder, "My forces will aid in the clearing of the port. In the meantime, ensure that the flames are put out and the civilians are all attended to." He began to walk away.

"Arthur!" Leo called after the man.

Both Eleanor and Teresa cringed at the informal name.

"Leo!" Eleanor hissed.

"How dare you!" Teresa glared.

However, the Lord Artorius merely looked over his shoulder and made eye contact with the man. "It has been a long time, Leonex Davidson. I'm afraid there is no time to talk at the moment."

"But-"

The man held up a hand. Leo, despite himself, found himself shutting up.

Artorius continued, "You may speak to me at my office in the Abbey Headquarters in a fortnight, on the date of my speech to the masses of Loegres. Then, you may feel free to ask as many questions as you like. Until then however, control your emotions. Look to reason. There are people here who need our help, Leo. Do not let the past keep you from focusing on what is truly at stake here."

Leo was frustrated beyond belief.

The man that he had wanted to find for  _years_ was now  _right_  in front of him, and he  _still_  wasn't getting any answers. Nonetheless, the man's words resonated with his own thoughts. The past wasn't as important as the present.

He relented. "…Alright. Count on it." He breathed.

Artorius gave an approving nod. With that matter closed, the man curtly walked out of the sanctuary and into the storm, off to aid in the restoration of the town.

Leo sighed.

He and Eleanor turned back to Teresa. "…Well, how can we help?" He asked.

The smell of death and destruction would haunt this town for years.


	13. C11 - Wanderer's Fate

**Chapter 11 – Wanderer's Fate.**

The sound of metal permeated every inch of town as the Army of Midgand drilled in unison in the main square. Shouts of commanding officers dictating the movements of the collective steel beast were drowned out by the flurry of sharp movement that followed each order.

A grand air of anticipation permeated the Crown Jewel of the Capital City Loegres. Scores of civilians flowed through the streets around the army; people from all over Midgand from Yesult to Hellawes had arrived to see the Savior with their own eyes. Street performers were out in mass while temporary stalls had been crammed wherever they could fit with their merchants hawking various goods at the huge crowds. Laughter and smiles filled the air. It was a mark of the times; a great contrast to the terrors that had plagued the nation a mere three years ago.

It was a time of festivity, of joy.

Leo grumbled sourly as he stuffed a pillow over his head in a vain attempt to keep the cacophony seeping in through the cracks of his inn room away from his ears. Straining his muscles to squeeze the pillow onto his ears, the man groaned as the sharp clanging of metal persevered and rang annoyingly as ever in his ears.

"Goddamnit! Can a man not get any sleep around here?!" He yelled heedlessly into his pillow. With a furious effort, he tossed the pillow across the room and into the wall, regrettably fully awake. He sighed, glaring daggers at his shuttered window as the crowd outside gave a renewed roar of applause as the army finished a particularly impressive drill. So much for resting after the trip back to Loegres from Hellawes.

Suddenly, Leo remembered what day it was.

Today was it. The day he would finally get to speak with the man he'd wanted to speak for years. After the address to the public, Artorius had promised to see him in his office.

All thoughts of rest fleeing his mind, Leo eagerly got up from his bed. Pulling on his coat and strapping on his rifle, he absently felt for the now familiar presence of Hawk inside of him. Unsurprisingly, the wolf's energy showed that he was still fast asleep. Lazy mutt.

Shaking his head, Leo stepped on over to the windows and pulled the curtains apart with a flourish. He squinted through the light and out the window of his second-floor room.

"Damn. That's a  _lot_  of people…" He muttered to himself. In all his time in Loegres, he'd never seen  _this_ many people in the capital. It was a damn ocean out there. He supposed it was time to go dive into them. Reluctantly, the man left his room, locking it behind him.

Down in the lobby of the inn, Leo felt like a fish in a torrential ocean. He gasped for breath as he surfaced from the crowd of people by the lobby desk. He whined to the innkeeper watching him with sympathy, "Dana. Please. End me. I can't make the journey from here all the way to the headquarters. There's  _too many people_!"

Dana shook her head in amusement at her regular guest. "Leo, if you can battle daemons and put up with your master's annoying malak, you can deal with a few extra souls on the road. Brighten up! It's a time to be happy, to celebrate the Abbey's rule! Be proud! You're an exorcist of the Abbey. Act like one!" She grinned as she reached over the counter and patted the man on his back.

"Uuuuugh." Leo moaned. "You and I both know that I'm technically not an Abbey exorcist, Dana. After all, that's why I'm living here instead of the Abbey barracks." He sighed. "…But yes, complaining aside, it is genuinely nice to see everyone so cheery."

Dana shared his smile. "Yes, times really have changed, haven't they?"

Leo's thoughts turned involuntarily back to the destruction in Hellawes, and the desperation of the outcasts in Beardsley. "Yeah. They've changed, alright." Leo muttered. He shook his head. "Anyways, wish me luck. I'm off to go talk to Lord Artorius himself."

Dana gasped. "The savior?! You're going to speak to him?!" She blinked. "…Wait, didn't you say you knew him once?"

Leo nodded. "Been waiting three damn years to catch up with the man. We have a lot to talk about."

Dana nodded. "If that's the case, I'm happy for you. Don't miss out on watching his speech with Prince Percival though! I've heard it's going to be an important announcement for the future of our world!"

Leo agreed. "Wouldn't miss it for the world."  _Not that I'm expecting it to be good news though._ Leo thought sourly. It was best to keep such rebellious thoughts to himself. "Anyways, I'll see you later, Dana."

Dana smiled genially. "Always happy to chat with my resident Abbey exorcist guest!"

Leo chuckled. "Still technically not an Abbey exorcist but whatever! Good luck with the inn!" He took a breath before diving back into the crowds, trying his best to make his way to the entrance of the inn without pushing too much.

He finally managed to squeeze his way out of the crowded inn and into the streets of Loegres. They weren't much better. It was utter chaos in the streets. Near pandemonium.

Leo winced as a gaggle of teenagers squealed, discussing how charming the crown prince was and how they'd love to be his wife! He waved off a merchant asking him if he wanted a new coat and followed the general flow of the crowd towards the headquarters. The speech was occurring soon. Gossip surrounded him. Anticipation for what the announcement might be was everywhere.

"Is he going to announce a cure for the daemonblight?!"

"That's just wishful thinking. I bet he's just going to announce something trivial, like more regulations on shipping routes."

"More regulations?! I hope not! The Abbey has us under their thumbs already!"

"Well! It's for good reason, I hope you know that! Without Lord Artorius and the Abbey, the world would all be buried in graves by now!"

"Yeah, you're right, of course. Come on! We need to get a good spot!"

Leo shook his head as the group of tourists hurried away.

Honestly, this world was a mess. A harsh rule or death by daemons. Dictatorship or anarchy. He shook his head. It wasn't like he could do anything about it.

Besides, it wasn't his world to begin with.

He followed the crowd around the main square towards the Abbey headquarters. The army was pretty much finished with their drills and was finishing final preparations before the military parade. Quite the show of force. His eyes noticed a flash of blue and white among the steel. He found an exorcist praetor watching over the exercises, guarded by a few guards. That reminded him of Eleanor.

 _I hope she made it back on safely… It's a shame that she had to stay back in Hellawes to help_.

Leo shook his head. He could hardly have stayed to help, not when Arthur himself had promised to meet him after the speech. He just hoped that she hadn't been delayed too long.

The crowd eventually funneled him towards the headquarters. He had to fight his way across the flow to avoid entering the main headquarter plaza, the gates of which were abnormally open to the public. Flashing his sigil of the Abbey to the guards at the smaller service gate, he entered the headquarters, thankful that he didn't have to deal with the crowd anymore.

As he traversed the familiar Abbey grounds, his thoughts turned to the impending talk with the savior of the world. He hoped he would finally get answers. Aball felt so long ago, and he had mostly moved on from the pain. Yet, he was still long-starved for closure. To know what had happened to Laphi and Velvet. And also…

He thought about a certain malak named Seres, and her warning.

It was time to put her words to the test. Would the man lie to him? And if he did, what did that mean?

Leo shook his head as he trotted inside the headquarters, joining the groups of exorcists headed up the stairs towards the landing designated for orderlies to watch the proceedings.

"Leo!" The man in question turned and saw Oscar taking the stairs two at a time to catch up to him.

"Hey Oscar!" Leo greeted the praetor informally, slowing his walk. His eyes widened as he took in the bandage wrapping underneath Oscar's hair and over his left eye.

"Looks bad, huh?" Oscar commented nonchalantly as he caught up with Leo. The two began to walk again, following the flow of exorcists.

Leo shook his head in horror. "Man, I'm sorry! I had no idea it was that bad…"

Oscar shook his head. "Don't be. This is merely a reminder to me of how I need to get stronger." His uncovered eye narrowed. "So that I can defeat the daemon that razed Hellawes and hurt my sister."

Leo nodded. "The more I hear about this infamous daemon, the more I want to put a sword through its gut."

Oscar nodded silently.

The two walked together in silence, the chattering of the other orderlies echoing off the walls of the stairwell.

"Still not enlisted, huh?" The praetor asked abruptly.

Leo shrugged noncommittally. "Oscar, you know me by now. Just not one to be tied down."

Oscar noted wryly, "And yet… you follow Eleanor everywhere she goes, helping her with Abbey duties."

Leo shrugged again. "Hey, at least I'm going it out of choice. Besides, you can hardly complain when I'm helping the Abbey, albeit unordered."

Oscar shook his head. "Always have to be the strange one, don't you, Leonex Davidson?"

Leo grinned unashamedly. "Guilty as charged."

The two came to a landing in the stairway. The majority of the exorcists flowing up the stairs were heading out into the balcony outside.

"You're headed up to be stationed with the other higher-ups, right Mr. Consul?" Leo asked.

Oscar confirmed. "That's right. It was nice seeing you again, Leo. Good hunting."

Leo gave a mock exorcist salute. "Of course. You too, sir."

Oscar chuckled in response and headed up the stairwell. Leo turned around and followed the rest of the exorcists onto the balcony. He had a speech to watch. Outside, the crowd began to chant.

"Midgand! Midgand! Midgand…"

Prince Percival Asgard the Third opened his mouth to address the public.

* * *

_Reason is what binds us… huh?_

Leo pondered as he studied the face of the newly declared Shepherd as he began to discuss new plans for the world.

' _The iron will to do what needs to be done…' Coming from the man who seized power in almost every aspect of Midgand's rule. Why do I get a bad feeling about this?_ He shook his head in consternation.

_If that's his stance, then what about the people who refuse to follow such reason…?_

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, Leo thought he saw movement on the walls enclosing the Abbey courtyard. For the briefest of seconds, he thought he'd seen a raven-black ghost from the past.

When he blinked, the battlements were utterly empty.

Shaking his head, he cursed himself for his lapse in concentration and refocused on the "Shepherd's" words. It would be good to know what changes the flock had in store for it.

A fitting name, he supposed. The only question was if he would lead them astray.

The ceremony went on for a long hour, during which the various heads of state addressed the public after the Shepherd had finished his speech. It seemed that the heads of the empire had quite the well laid-out plan for guiding humanity out of this Era of Disaster.

Leo was unbelievably glad when Prince Percival returned to give a closing speech, once again reaffirming the need for reason in such arduous times. He sighed in relief as people began to file down the stairs. At least, he  _was_  relieved.

"That was incredible! Holy crap, Shepherd Artorius! What a fitting title!"

Leo winced as a particularly chatty exorcist practically glued himself to the pseudo-exorcist in fervor. "I'm headed straight to the church to pray to this fifth Empyrean 'Innominat'! Come on! Come with me, Leo!" The man tugged at Leo.

Leo wrenched himself away from the man. "Calm down, man! And anyways, I have to have a chat with someone first."

The exorcist shook his head, frustrated. "Gah, I forget. You're always so distant to everyone! How can you not enlist right here and now after hearing that wonderful speech about will and reason?!"

Leo just shook his head wordlessly and walked away from the enthusiastic man, headed up the stairs while the rest of the exorcists filed downwards, all the while ruminating on the speeches he'd just heard.

 _I didn't see Eleanor with the rest of the praetors_ , Leo suddenly remembered.  _I guess her ship ran into a storm or something. I hope she gets back soon. I'm going to go crazy being alone here…_

He apologized as he squeezed his way up the stairs between all the higher-ranking exorcist praetors as they walked down the stairs in groups. Eventually, Leo made his way to the highest floor of the headquarters, where the offices of major heads of state were located.

Before he could enter the hallway leading down to the Shepherd, he was stopped by a number of tough-looking exorcists on guard duty.

"Hey guys." Leo greeted as he rummaged through his coat pockets and pulled out his documentation. "Leonex Davidson, exorcist in training? I believe Lord Artorius is expecting me."

The exorcist took the documentation and examined it thoroughly.

 _Impressive security. I suppose everyone does want to keep the savior of their world safe._ Leo noted.  _Amazing how everyone loves Artorius with such fervor..._

He was snapped out of his thoughts when the man handed his papers back over. "Everything seems to be in order. The Shepherd is indeed expecting you. Last door down the hallway, sir Davidson."

Leo nodded. Before he could start walking though, the man held up a hand. "And we'll need to keep your weapons and your malak."

Leo nodded absent-mindedly. "Naturally." He handed over his gauntlet and his firearm. The exorcist blinked as he held the strange weapon but said nothing. It was widely-held knowledge in the Abbey how weird Leonex Davidson was.

"Hawk!" Leo called out. He was rewarded with a yip as his malak appeared on the railing of the stairwell, yawning luxuriously. "You lazy bastard." Leo accused. "You slept through the entire speech, didn't you?" The wolf gave another drawn out yawn, whining in response. He clearly couldn't've cared less. Leo let out a fond scoff. He turned back to the waiting exorcist watching him strangely. "Alright. That should be everything, yes?"

The exorcist nodded. "Your weapons shall be waiting for you when you get back." He glanced briefly at the lounging wolf. One could fancy that that malak had free will if one deluded themselves hard enough.

Leo nodded and started walking down the long hallway. It was time.

He narrowed his eyes. Everywhere he looked, everyone seemed to be singing praises of the newly christened Shepherd. The savior of the world. The sword of reason against the chaos. All the exorcists had pledged their lives to upholding his rule.

Leo himself had seen how the daemons of this world, such as the ones that had razed Hellawes, posed a major threat to the happiness of all living beings in this world. Most of the world had willingly accepted the regulations of the Abbey.

And yet, the regulations were harsh. Their terms, cruel. The townsfolk of Beardsley passed through Leo's thoughts. The poor, hopeless folk heartlessly abandoned by the Abbey, cast out to be left for the daemons.

The sword of reason was forged out of cold and cruel raw steel. Steel that was enchanted by emotionless malaks, their very wills sealed away; slaves, in every sense of the word. He would never, ever allow his loving, playful Hawk to be relegated to a mere tool to wield against daemons. It was all too cold.

It was all a big, boiling vat of contradictions that only life could serve as a main course. People like Eleanor and the town of Hellawes loved Lord Artorius, and people like Seres and the town of Beardsley evidently hated Lord Artorius.

Personally, Leo never really knew what to think of Artorius, back in Aball. He had been quite the dedicated family man back then… but time changed everybody. Who knew who the man he once knew had become? Absolute power corrupted absolutely.

Or was that not the case here? Well, he reckoned it was time he judged the so-called Shepherd for himself.

With that thought in mind, the man came to a halt and knocked on the Shepherd Artorius's door.

* * *

"Leonex Davidson. How long has it been?" Lord Artorius asked as he glanced up from the papers on his desk at the old acquaintance.

Leo shut the door behind him, letting himself into the spacious office. He gave it some thought. "We last saw each other on the roof of your house back in Aball… I believe a week before the Advent? So, three whole years." Leo summarized as he sat down in a plushy chair across from the Shepherd. He remarked dryly, "How things have changed."

Artorius nodded, putting down his quill in an inkpot and giving the man across from him his full attention. "Quite." He commented simply.

Leo asked curiously, "I suppose I shouldn't call you Arthur anymore, huh? That was always what Velvet and Laphi called you, back in the day. I assume it's Shepherd Artorius now?"

The Shepherd nodded. "It was a name granted to me by the rulers of Midgand. I have no preference as to what you call me. After all, you were a family friend, back before all of this."

Leo nodded. "And then we get to the heart of the matter." He leaned in, head placed contemplatively on interlaced hands. "How is it, exactly, that the exorcist of a wild frontier town in the middle of nowhere in Eastgand has suddenly become the de-facto ruler of an entire kingdom in just three years?"

Artorius replied calmly, "You heard my speech, correct? It is as I said. I will do anything for the service of this great nation."

Leo nodded sagely. "And I assume taking direct control of both the religious and secular branches of the government and imposing your rule over all of Midgand is one of the things you'd be willing to do?"

Artorius's eyes narrowed. "…You don't approve." He observed.

Leo shook his head. "No, I don't." He confirmed. "I'm not a fan of harsh rulers who bend the world to their will. But…" He trailed off before finding the words. "…At the same time, I also deeply appreciate what you and the Abbey have done for the world. The daemons…"

Artorius finished, "The tide of daemons must've been quelled somehow. People had to stop dying. Families had to stop being torn apart. Cities had to stop degrading. Nations had to regain control. Good. At least you understand this much."

Leo nodded, leaning back in his chair. "Hence, the Abbey. I admired the exorcists, at least at first." He explained. "When I first met Eleanor, I was won over by how powerful she was, and how she just seemed to radiate goodwill for the rest of the world. If everyone was like her, I thought, then the world would be a much, much more peaceful place."

"Ah, of course. I have kept an eye on you over the years, Leo, despite never finding the time to come to you in person." He raised his hand to his mouth in contemplation. "Meeting Eleanor, asking to have your name forwarded as a personal request to me, training to become an exorcist, and helping the young Praetor carry out her duties." He eyed the man contemplatively. "You've been quite the boon to the Abbey, Leo."

Leo shook his head. "Not because I was ordered, though. Because I wanted to. Out of my own free will." Leo rose his chin and met the Shepherd's eyes determinedly.

"I help where I want to and do what I think is right. To be frank, I'm not a big fan of this overuse of the word 'reason' everywhere I go. I've grown to have a bit of a negative disposition towards the Abbey, to be honest with you, Shepherd. Even Eleanor and I don't get along quite as well as we used to because of it. That's my take on it all."

Artorius sighed. "…You and Velvet were always the same. Emotional." He muttered.

Leo leant forward in his chair. This was it. The one question that had kept coming back all these years.

"…Arthur." He whispered, quietly.

"What happened?"

And that was it. Nothing else needed to be asked. Both men knew exactly what Leo was referring to.

Lord Artorius met Leo's determined eyes. He seemed to be looking for something in them.

The two sat there in silence, sizing each other up in the silence of the stone-cold room.

"Why is it you think that birds fly?"

It took a moment for Leo to reorient himself to the question out of surprise. The way the man asked the question… it held some sort of deeper meaning.

A test, he was sure.

Leo carefully considered his words before answering. He found his thoughts turning to Velvet, and to Laphi. He thought of his internal conflict. Why he ran away in the first place.

He came to his answer.

"…Birds fly… because they don't want to land." Leo answered. His fists curled. "I say that a bird flies… because it wants to enjoy what it has before it's wings tire. Before the inevitable."

Leo sighed.

"…And I think birds are fools for doing so." He intoned bitterly. "The better option would be to never fly at all. Better to just keep close to the ground, where there is no danger of risking pain."

_After all, that's what I did._

After he finished his answer, the room returned to silence. Leo watched the man across from him, awaiting judgement.

"…You are a strange one, Leonex Davidson." the Shepherd muttered.

An answer borne of emotional longing yet tempered by disillusioned reasoning. A fully split answer. Curious. The Shepherd shook his head dismissively and met Leo's eyes. He opened his mouth and answered Leo's earlier question.

"Velvet and Laphicet are gone."

Just like that. The cold, declarative words that Leo had known to be true for so long were finally uttered. The only known surviving soul from the massacre at Aball had just confirmed what he'd long accepted in his heart.

Those precious kids… were dead. Leo sighed in resignation. "…How?" He asked, grinding his teeth. "How could you let them die?"

And infuriatingly, the Shepherd, the man Leo had thought would've happily given his life to protect his precious family, shook his head wordlessly. He would be offering no more information, Leo knew. His fists clenched.

He deserved more than this! Damnit it all! He needed more answers! How could this man let his brother-in-law and sister-in-law die?!

His thoughts flashed back to Seres, long ago. She was right. He didn't believe the man. There was so much more he wasn't telling Leo, he knew. He could feel it in his bones. His blood boiled.

Shepherd of the world, and yet not the Shepherd of his own family? He didn't believe it. There was no way this man would willingly live while his children died. At least, the man he thought he knew.

Suddenly, this cold, emotionless man sitting across from him seemed even more nefarious than before. Just what the hell had happened?!

"…Fine." Leo grit out through his teeth. "Don't tell me. But… you granted my request to let me train as an exorcist, long ago. I now have one last request for you."

Artorius inclined his head, heedless of the man's evident fury.

"Let me speak to Seres."

He looked on with a degree of petty satisfaction as Artorius's eyes widened slightly in surprise. So, the man wasn't completely an emotionless brick.

Artorius muttered, "So… she revealed herself to even you… Yes… that would explain…" He trailed off.

Leo could only furrow his eyebrow at this.

He suddenly gave Leo a hard look, declaring coldly, "Seres is dead. The fool of a malak betrayed the Abbey for a worthless cause, defending the same daemon who maimed Oscar, purged Hellawes, and destroyed Vortigern. The same one that ultimately turned on her. It would be wise to ignore any words she spoke to you."

"Farewell, Leonex Davidson."

And that was it. He was dismissed.

Three years. And that was it. This was all he had to show for it. Laphi and Velvet and apparently Seres were all dead. Artorius was a changed man, and not for the better. A man who would emotionlessly disregard of the memory of the family he once loved with all his heart. How… infuriatingly cold.

Unable to take the disgusting man's presence anymore, Leo nodded sharply and got up swiftly. He turned around wordlessly, slamming the door behind himself with a rather telling finality.

As the man's footsteps in the hallway faded away, the Shepherd mused to himself, "I wonder… What will you do, when the time comes? What side will you choose? …In what direction does the tide flow?" He trailed off.

He shook his head. He could only hope that the man would see Reason, in more ways than one.

That Leo would be the key to despair.

He shook his head clear of his musings and picked up his quill again, going back to work and purging all thoughts of certain daemons and pseudo-exorcists from his thoughts.

The flock didn't herd itself.

* * *

CRACK!

CRACK!

CRACK!

CRACK!

Leo gasped for breath as he cocked his rifle furiously again, clicking the trigger of the empty gun a few times for good measure. He then let out a wordless roar as he spun around and sliced his gauntlet blade into the practice dummies set up in the empty sunset-lit courtyard.

Hawk whined as he watched his master furiously disembowel the straw dummies, heedless of how badly he treated his weaponry.

"Stupid Shepherd! Stupid Abbey! Stupid everything!" Leo cried as he waved his gauntlet blade furiously in the air to clean the straws off it. He caught his breath.

"Seres was right. Rebellious malak or not, she was right. The man did not tell me the full story. Not even close." He seethed.

Hawk whined in response.

Leo sheathed his sword with a groan, cracking his tense muscles and catching his rifle dangling from its strap. He sat down next to Hawk in the grass, absent-mindedly pushing a hand through the malak's fur.

He explained, "Remember those kids from Aball I told you about? That town that I arrived in when I first came to this world?" Hawk yipped. Leo continued, "Well, Artorius, or the Shepherd, as he's now called, just told me that they died."

Hawk gave out another whine.

"It's alright, bud. I knew that they were dead, deep down. I've moved on already." He sucked in a breath.

"But what I don't get is how the man who I thought would gladly give up his life to protect his family is still alive. And not only that, he spoke of his dead family like it was nothing to him! On top of that, he was excruciatingly vague! He refused to tell me anything more than, 'Velvet and Laphicet are gone.' What the hell!" Leo burst out.

Hawk nudged Leo's thigh.

Leo nodded softly. "Yeah, yeah, I know. People change… Maybe his coldness is just how Artorius is dealing with his loss. He did lose Celica and her unborn child before in the Opening…" Leo paused in thought.

He shook his head. "No… That doesn't seem right. Not at all."

The man sighed. "It's just… frustrating, Hawk. I thought I was going to get closure when I woke up today. Now all I have at the end of the day is a bunch of vague nonsense that only deepens the mystery. Now I'm as blind as ever to what exactly happened that night."

He grunted as he fell backwards into the grass, Hawk taking the opportunity to crawl onto his chest. He looked up at the dim stars invading the sunset sky.

"…Why am I doing all this in the first place, Hawk?" He breathed.

The wolf looked at him questioningly.

Leo elaborated, "The past is the past, right? It's hardly relevant to the worries of today. I've got enough on my plate as it is. The ravaging daemons, the heartless Abbey regime. I've been trying my best to help people out so that they don't feel the pain that I went through when I discovered that Aball had been destroyed, but it's hardly a one-man job."

He grunted. "At the same time, sometimes I don't even know why I'm even trying to help people. I thought the purpose I found after Eleanor saved my life was something good, you know? That saving people with exorcist artes would make me feel… whole. Now… I'm not so sure. It all seems so pointless after that meeting."

He sighed. "You know, I've got maybe one years left in this world tops." He looked sadly at the malak he had grown so attached to despite himself over the years. "And when that day comes… I'll have to say goodbye to all of it. Midgand, the Abbey and it's Shepherd, the scourge of daemons. Eleanor. Bienfu. Oscar. Teresa. Even you." He rubbed Hawk sadly, who whined in distress.

"You know buddy, I can't take you with me when I leave." He shook his head. "My machine  _can_  take other people along with its primary occupant, but it needs more power to do so… Maybe… I should just leave you alone, to save both of us the pain of me leaving."

"If we were birds, it would most likely be for the best for the both of us not to fly together at all, since I'm flying to a different destination to everyone else, including you."

He asked honestly with as much straightforwardness as possible, "Do you want to leave, Hawk? It would be best for both of us in the end…" Leo trailed off miserably.

Hawk bit the man in the arm, hard.

"GAH!" Leo cried as he flew up, clutching his bleeding forearm. "The hell was that for?!" He whirled at his smug malak.

Hawk shot his stupid master a fierce glare.

The man blinked. "…Right, right. Got it. I'm thinking too hard." Leo fell back to the floor, defeated. Hawk whined an apology and began a healing arte to heal the wound on Leo's arm.

Leo chuckled. "For better or for worse, huh bud?"

The wolf nodded determinedly. Leo grinned, despite himself. It was all he could do these days. One foot in front of the other, trying not to look ahead. His friendship with Eleanor and Hawk was defined by that philosophy. His role in the Abbey was defined by that philosophy.

Hell, his entire existence was defined by that philosophy.

He needed a drink, he suddenly decided.

* * *

The city was quiet that night; a dramatic contrast to the hustle and bustle that had been barely contained in the streets earlier in the day.

The moon was Leo's sole companion as he trotted purposefully through the empty square of Loegres. The only other people on the streets were soldiers of the army, maintaining order after a busy day.

Everyone was exhausted after the emotions that had flown through the town during the ceremony, content that they had witnessed the precipice of a new era of humanity. The Shepherd! The Empyrean Innominat! The world! Everyone's dreams would be of grand things tonight. The tourists had all returned to their inns and the taverns had all mostly closed for the night. Most of them.

Leo let out a sigh of relief as he finally made it to the Bloodwing Butterflies Bar. He'd been lucky in the respect that he hadn't seen one more person prattling on and on and on about how amazing the Shepherd was. If he had, he might've committed homicide on the way there.

He shook his sour thoughts off as he stepped into the warmly lit tavern. This was the one place he knew he could relax without shooting someone in the face.

"Leo! It's good to see your face again. Rough going?"

The man grinned as he was welcomed into the mostly empty tavern. It was late at night, after all. "You know me too well, Tabatha." He greeted warmly as he strolled past the empty tables over to the bar.

Tabatha smiled and knowingly pulled out a particular bottle of alcohol just for him. "Naturally. It's good for business to know your return customers well." The old lady unscrewed the bottle and filled a shot glass without being prompted, sliding the glass on the bar over to the regular as he sat down heavily.

Leo sighed morosely, laying out a few coins of gald for the drink. "Well, you're not wrong. It's all getting me a bit down, I'll be honest." He admitted to the bartender. "The whole mess with the Abbey's harsh regime, the terror of daemons."

Tabatha nodded wisely. "Of course. Everybody needs a stiff drink now and then in such harsh times to take the edge off." She raised an intelligent eyebrow. "But that's not what's got you here on my doorstep, is it?"

Leo chuckled, picking up the filled shot glass and idly playing with it. "Again, you know me too well." He sighed. "How do I phrase this…" He snapped his fingers. "Have you ever waited for something, for so long, that once you finally get it, you don't even remember why exactly you wanted it in the first place?"

Tabatha nodded knowingly. "So," she concluded, "disappointment, is it?"

Leo nodded. "That's the word. But not only that. I'd say a fitting companion to 'disappointment' is… 'disillusionment.'"

Tabatha sighed. "What a terrible word." She leaned forward on the bar, eyeing Leo. "And yet, a fitting one for the times."

Leo nodded soberly. "Fitting is correct."

"However," Tabatha continued, "sometimes… disillusionment just what is needed." Her eyes glinted as she glanced meaningfully at her customer. "…To find the will to move forward and do what needs to be done. To do what one thinks is right."

Leo stared at the bartender. Why did he get the feeling there was more to those words than she was leading on?

The old woman gave a wry smile that belied her age and then palmed the gald on the bar. "It was nice to see you again, Leo. Come back soon, okay?" With that, she strolled off and up the stairs, into the bowels of the building.

Leo stared after her in deep thought.

"Tough times, friend?"

Leo looked behind him in surprise. Sitting at the only other occupied table in the tavern were two strange-looking men, evidently quite far into their respective poisons. "Talking to me?" He asked.

The speaker, a man in a black coat with sharp blue eyes, nodded. "I overheard your conversation." He admitted. "If I may, I've been a lot of places and seen a lot of things. I might be able to offer up some meaningful advice."

Leo shrugged. "I suppose it can't hurt. Shoot."

"Hold the wheel of your own ship."

"Huh?"

The man sitting across from the stranger at the table, cradling a bottle of sake, spoke up. "What this guy means to say is, you should seek your own path, not follow anyone else's. If you're disillusioned by something, that means you're waking up to the fact that you're not quite happy with the way your life is going. So, change it."

The man in the trench coat gave an impressed hmph. "Not bad, Rokurou. Took the words right out of my mouth."

The man, Rokurou, gave a sheepish laugh. "Well, I think it's safe to say that I've figured you out, Eizen."

Eizen shrugged. "I simply follow a creed. Nothing more complex than that." He openly admitted. "Life's most elegant when it's most simple." The man turned his gaze back to the stranger at the bar watching the exchange.

"I say," he rose a tinkling glass of whiskey to the stranger, "that everyone should find their own creed to live by, whatever that might be. I suggest you should too."

Leo looked thoughtful. "Hold the wheel of your own ship…" He muttered.

His mind whirled. The Abbey. Their notion of Reason. The Shepherd's cold, emotionless voice as he talked about the deaths of his family.

Leo clutched his shot glass.

He was done with it all. This man was damned right!

"I'll drink to that!" Leo grinned.

The two shared a shot. Leo sighed as the familiar sting of alcohol tickled his throat, leaving a pleasant burn in his stomach.

With that done, Leo slammed the cup upside down on the bar behind him and stood up, the blood rushing to his head. "Thanks for the advice, man. I'll do it. I'll go man my own ship. I'll let you know how it goes if we ever meet again."

Eizen inclined his head with respect. "Good luck to you, sailor."

Leo grinned. "Later!" He called to the strangers as he rushed out the door.

Rokurou blinked as the door to the tavern swung closed. "…Did guy leave after taking a single shot?"

"Oh, that man?" The daemon and reaper both turned to see Tabatha returning down the stairs, going behind the bar and screwing the mostly-full bottle sitting on the bar firmly. "He only takes a single shot every time. 'Anymore,' he says, 'and I guarantee you I'll be throwing up all over the bar for the rest of the night.'" Tabatha chuckled heartily as she stowed the bottle away for later use.

The two men stared flatly at Tabatha. "…What a lightweight." They muttered in unison.

* * *

A few nights later, Leo nodded perfunctorily to the guards working the night shift at the Abbey Headquarter gates as he strolled inside, heading towards the praetor residences. He walked hurriedly over the paved walkways while at the same time trying his best to act inconspicuously. He slipped inside the building and headed down the sequence of turns that would take him to Eleanor's room.

He'd already made sure that Eleanor would be out at this time and wouldn't be back for a few hours at least. He'd heard that his mentor had arrived a few days ago, her ship having been delayed by the storm causing her to unfortunately miss the ceremony. Still, he hadn't seen her yet.

And if this worked out, he hopefully wouldn't.

Taking a quick glance around to make sure the guards weren't within eyesight, Leo pulled out a homemade lockpick set and bent down, quickly working the tumblers. It wasn't a particularly difficult lock; he had it open after thirty heart-pounding seconds. He quickly closed the heavy wooden door behind him.

His eyes softened as they wandered around the familiar room. He'd been in here a surprising amount of times, helping Eleanor with this and that. After over two years of knowing each other, they'd become good friends, despite their differences over the Abbey's harsh rule.

That's what made this hard enough to begin with. Leo cursed himself.

Shaking himself, he reached inside his coat pocket and pulled out a letter, placing it carefully on top of the writing desk. Objective complete, Leo promptly whispered into the room, "Hawk! Check outside for me, would you?"

The wolf appeared in a flash of green on the bed and glared accusingly at Leo. He waved him off. "Yes, I know, I'm a coward. Now hurry up!"

The pup let out a breath at his master's stupidity and promptly did as ordered, disappearing and reappearing in a flash. He gave a quick nod. Leo returned it and then promptly stepped out of the room into the empty hallway, not bothering to relock it behind him.

He then promptly walked out of the dorms, and then out of the Abbey Headquarters. For good. He took one last glance over his shoulder at the gates.

There was nothing about this frozen, soulless place he would miss, save for one friend.

_Goodbye… Eleanor._

Leo sighed as he trudged away from the Abbey, his tail between his legs.

* * *

"Going somewhere?"

_Oh fuck._

Leo went over every single curse word he knew in his head, both worldly and otherworldly, as he turned slowly around from his half-packed travel bag to the open door to his inn room.

He sighed. "And here I thought I could leave without saying goodbye." He muttered.

In all the time Leo had known Eleanor Hume, he'd never seen her so utterly furious as she did just then. He cringed as she stormed up to him with all the grace of a rabid tigress.

THWACK!

Leo grunted in pain as the praetor's slap landed flat on the side of his face at full power, snapping his neck to the side and causing him to reel down onto the floor. He collided harshly on the wood floor with a groan.

She shouted down at him, "How  _dare you_! Why would you possibly feel the need to say goodbye in the most  _insulting_  way possible?!" She roughly pitched his goodbye letter, open and looking particularly pathetic, on the ground next to him with distain. She huffed indignantly.

"We've known each other for more than  _two years_ , Leo. I thought we were closer than this!" She sniffed. "But I guess… I guess this shows you never truly know what a person feels towards you, huh? Discarded like a toy you were tired with playing, is that right?" She shouted with volume nearing hysteria.

"That's  _NOT IT_!" Leo shouted back, equally indignant.

Eleanor, for all her fury, was taken aback as Leo huffed furiously and picked himself back up from the ground, seething back at her. He intoned sincerely, "Eleanor, I swear, that was NOT why I did this." He waved his letter in her face and then tossed it over his shoulder. That plan was kaput now.

He continued fiercely, "I tried to make it clear in the letter, but I guess it wasn't extensive enough…" He shook his head. "Anyways, Eleanor. Let me start this all over. I have to leave." He declared.

Eleanor huffed. "Really?" She asked dryly. "I couldn't tell."

Leo chuckled despite the situation. "Hey! Was that sarcasm?! I did have an impact on you after all!"

Eleanor rolled her eyes, calming down from her fury. "So. You going to tell me why, my treasured pupil?"

Leo nodded. He sat down on his bed and gestured for Eleanor to come join him.

As she sat down expectantly, he explained, "I'm done with the Abbey. I've come to terms with its true nature, and it's not a pretty sight. I'm tired of all of these laws. I'm tired of all this devotion from desperate civilians with nowhere else to turn. I'm tired of all these self-righteous exorcists who think their reason is law."

To Eleanor's hurt expression, Leo reassured, "Aside from you, naturally. You, Eleanor, have always been the absolute kindest and most genuine paragon for human goodness in this entire damn organization." He sighed. "Why else do you think I followed you around all these years?"

Eleanor let out a breath. "I appreciate your faith in me, truly." Her fists clenched in emotion. "But why do you hate the Abbey so?! Didn't you say you wanted nothing more than to stop tragedies like the one that happened to that town of yours from repeating itself for other people from daemons?!"

Leo nodded. "That hasn't changed. When I leave, I'll still do my best to help people, wherever I can." He patted Eleanor's shoulder fondly. "You've been that much of an inspiration to me." Eleanor smiled, despite herself.

"You were always a softie at heart." She muttered.

Leo cried out in mock affront, "No way! I'm the manliest person there is!"

"Right." She drawled. "I'm sure having crippling seasonal allergies is a manly trait."

"Shht." Leo hushed. "Anyways, as for the reason why I hate the Abbey…" He shook his head and changed the subject.

"…I met with the Shepherd, a few nights ago." He muttered.

Eleanor blinked. "That's right! Lord Artorius himself invited you to speak to him after the ceremony at Hellawes!" Realization dawned on her expression. "…Did he tell you what happened to his family; your friends?"

Leo nodded. "They're dead."

Eleanor sighed. "I'm so sorry, Leo."

Leo shook his head. "I've long come to terms with their deaths already. This just confirmed it." His eyes narrowed. "What did shock me was the fact that Lord Artorius, the man I thought I knew would take a blade to the gut for his family acted… like he didn't care at all about his dead children."

He sighed, looking away. "He was so… cold."

Eleanor's eyes widened. She muttered weakly, "That… That can't be right…"

Leo shrugged helplessly. "That's how he acted. Honest…" He sighed and looked out the darkened window.

"The man's changed. Very, very much. And he was the reason why I've finally decided to leave the Abbey, after all these years." He shook his head. "Eleanor, listen to me. This organization you work for… The Abbey's rule… The Shepherd… All of it."

He searched for the words. "…It's not right."

Eleanor burst out, "And what exactly does that mean, Leo?!"

Leo struggled to express his thoughts, "It's… just too cold. I can't stomach the Abbey's 'reason' anymore." He explained. "Apparently, they've decided that humans are no longer human anymore; that all of us should act only in the interest of the greater whole." He sighed. "Family, friends, kindness, generosity. What does it all matter, if in the end, all we care about is the survival of the human race and nothing more?"

Eleanor grasped for words. Anything to defend this organization whom she'd vainly told herself was the best thing for this world. And yet, nothing came to mind. Leo's words had struck a chord deep within her.

She regretfully muttered, "I… I'm afraid I can't fully disagree with you. The Abbey has indeed done… terrible things. But I would also argue that the Abbey does more good than it does bad!"

Leo shook his head. "And that sort of reasoning right there is the problem. Because it's 'reasonable,' and nothing else. I don't claim to have a better solution for keeping the world safe, but at the same time, I can't possibly stomach being remotely near an organization that thinks that the death of one's family is a fucking irrelevant detail." He fisted his coat in his hands. "It's all just too heartless!"

Eleanor understood now. Leo had always been distant from the Abbey's ideals at the start. Furthermore, what he said was unfortunately the ugly truth of the reality of the Abbey today. She'd known this already but had just chosen to ignore it up until now.

She admitted quietly, "…It's true. All of it. The things the Abbey has to do… are often hard, and at times… inhuman."

Leo nodded. "But despite that, I'm sure you'll keep doing what you've been doing as a praetor, of course?"

Eleanor nodded reluctantly. "There is no better option. As you say, neither of us can change how the world works. All we can do is put one foot in front of the other and help where we can. And the best place for me to help is in the Abbey."

Leo sighed. "…I knew you'd say that. I know you too well." He looked away sadly. "I knew this would end in a goodbye."

Eleanor sighed in exasperation. "So. Is this why you left a letter in my room rather than telling me up front? Because you hate goodbyes?"

Leo nodded, sadly. "I've…" he decided to admit one thing, one single scrap of his past to this lady who he'd grown close to.

"I've said too many goodbyes. More than enough for a single lifetime." He sighed and closed his eyes. Hawk, reading his mind, appeared and attempted to act as a distraction from the emotions.

Leo absent-mindedly scratched his malak as he spoke. "…I'm scared of parting. Really." He admitted softly. "That's why I've tried my best to stay away from everyone, just because of my fear." He laughed humorlessly.

His thoughts flashed to Artorius's question. "If you don't fly at all, you can't fall."

Eleanor quietly pointed out, "But, despite this, you still stuck with me all these years."

Leo laughed humorlessly. "Yeah. I'm an idiot, aren't I? I whine about how much I'm afraid of saying goodbye, and yet wherever I go, I keep on making friendships that I know I'll have to break. I'm a self-contradicting hypocrite." He admitted.

He sighed. "So, I tried my damndest to make this parting easier on myself. I suppose… I was being selfish. I'm… really sorry, Eleanor."

He met Eleanor's gaze sincerely. "Truly. I really, really treasured the time we've had together. I need you to understand that. Thank you, for saving my life, for training me, for being a friend; for everything. …But now… because of the Abbey… I have to go."

Eleanor nodded soberly.

She admitted softly in response, "Despite how weird you get sometimes, Leo," (Leo made a mock offended face at her which she ignored), "I'm proud to call you a friend. Thank you, for what it's worth. I know… you have secrets. I know you have your own problems and your own fears to deal with. I won't pry, like always. You've always tried your best to keep everyone at arm's length these past few years.

"Nevertheless, thank you. The warm times we've shared together… I'll treasure these memories. And I wish you luck in your own hunts against daemons, and your own personal pursuit of a better world."

Leo gave a wet chuckle, sniffing. "Damnit Eleanor, stop. Anymore and you might convince me that you actually care for me!"

THWACK!

"Ow!" Leo cringed at the good-natured slap. "Kidding! Goddamn it, woman!"

Eleanor sighed. "…We're speaking as if this is the last time we shall ever see each other again in this lifetime. Why is that? Surely, we might meet in our travels, far, far in the future?"

Leo shook his head sadly. "I'm afraid that's… unlikely. I'll have to leave for my own home soon."

Eleanor looked thoughtful at the enigmatic man. "The home that's not on the map, like you told me, correct?"

Leo nodded wordlessly.

Keeping his secrets until the very end.

Eleanor sighed. "…Well, if that's the case, I'm glad I caught up with you before you left, idiot." She whacked him lightly again. ("Gah! Quit bullying me!") "Don't you ever dare treat a lady like that when you fall in love! Nobody likes it when the man runs away!"

Leo was caught horribly off-guard. " _WHOA_! Wa-wait a minute!" He stammered. "How the hell did the conversation end up at my non-existent love-life?"

Eleanor gave a laugh. "Oh? Non-existent, you say? Perhaps I should ask Bienfu to give you some tips before you leave?"

"Agh! Anything but that!" Leo mock cringed.

The two shared a laugh together.

Leo smiled sadly. Oh, how he loathed bittersweet things.

"Okay." He stood up suddenly. "I should go now. This goodbye's been harder than it should've been already."

Eleanor stood up as well, noting wryly, "What, because your idiotic note plan fell through?"

"Well, yes! And for the record, why exactly did you come back so early? I thought you were assigned to patrol the streets according to the posted schedule?"

Eleanor's face darkened alarmingly.

She let out in almost a growl, "That… daemon from Hellawes. She's here, in Loegres."

"What?!" Leo let out in alarm. "Is there going to be a similar raid here?!"

Eleanor shook her head. "It doesn't seem that way. This daemon is smart, and not the type to blindly commit to suicidal tasks. No. I've been tracking her appearances. And I think I know where she'll be tonight."

Leo's eyes bulged. "Do you need help? I can give you a hand for one last Abbey job before I leave."

Eleanor shook her head. "No. This is something I must do on my own." She clenched her fists in uncharacteristic fury.

Leo exchanged glances with Hawk. That was… not worrying at all…

"Leo." The man glanced back up at Eleanor who had a fierce glint in her eye. "In case the red-clawed daemon gets away from me tonight and you run into it somewhere along your travels…"

"Put. It. Down." She spat almost viciously. "The daemon  _needs_ to die."

Leo was momentarily struck speechless by how vicious the normally reasonable woman was being. This daemon… this daemon had completely and utterly gotten under Eleanor's skin.

Leo nodded slowly, deeply worried for his friend. "Alright. I promise. If I find a red-clawed daemon, I won't hesitate."

Eleanor nodded gratefully. "Thank you, Leo. I'm glad knowing that even if I fail, you'll be there to stop this mad daemon."

Leo nodded, wordlessly.

He shook himself, forcing himself to stop worrying about his teacher's obvious obsession. It just wasn't his business anymore. It was time to go.

He shouldered his pack and fiddled with his gun. "Alright. I'm headed out. Goodbye, Eleanor."

Eleanor gave her pupil a tight, tight hug. "Stay safe, Leo."

Leo hugged his friend back just as strongly, nodding. "You too, Eleanor."

The man let go and stepped away from his dear friend. With one final shared mock exorcist salute, Leo turned around and left out the open door.

He knew he would never see her again.

The man let out a long pent-up breath as he stepped out of the inn and into the night. It had been hard, but he'd managed to suffer through the hardship of saying farewell. Now, finally free at last, it was time to do what he did best.

A smile formed on his lips, despite himself.

It was finally time to wander.

**End of Part 1 – The Era of Disaster.**


	14. C12 - Fated Encounter

**Chapter 12 – Fated Encounter.**

Rotten wood crunched underneath Leo's boots as he tromped through the abandoned village. He winced as the dull crack of wood sliced through the calm daytime ambiance of the wilderness some ways off the beaten track of the Danann Highway.

"Nobody here, right, Hawk?" Leo asked to nobody in particular.

His malak appeared in front of him with a flash of green, conducting perfunctory scent checks for anyone in the area.

Leo commented idly, "I doubt it. Looks like this village has been abandoned for a while now. The townsfolk must've decided they would be better off living in Port Zekson or Loegres rather than dealing with the constant daemon attacks." He glanced around analytically. "Still, it looks like they left in a hurry. Might be some good loot laying around…" He trailed off.

Hawk gave him an accusatory glare.

"Hey! None of that sass, mister. I don't even come from this world, you know! Looting is no problem for such a well-travelled guy like me."

Hawk rolled his eyes.

Leo shrugged. "Well, that, and also it looks like nobody's been here for over a year now, so I might as well pick up anything I might be able to turn into equipment."

He glanced idly around at the landscape surrounding the village. Plains, mountains, and the occasional copse of trees. The usual Midgand fare in terms of biome diversity.

The man took a moment to close his eyes and savor it all. The wind blowing softly in his hair. The chirping of bugs in the sea of grass invading the abandoned village. The brilliant sun kissing his face. The feeling of being free. Of being on an adventure.

He'd never stop loving this feeling.

Leo opened his eyes in surprise as Hawk gave him a nudge on the leg, pointing with his nose.

"Human?" Leo asked.

For some reason, the wolf didn't seem to know how to answer that.

Leo blinked. "That's strange…" He looked off at the direction Hawk was indicating. Deeper into the abandoned village.

"Well." He decided abruptly. "That loot won't pick up itself. Might as well explore a little." The man shrugged. "Let's go, Hawk. Keep a nose out for me, would you? Warn me if any daemons are nearby." Hawk nodded in response.

The two of them began to stroll through the quiet town, ears and eyes opened.

"Ah!" Leo breathed as his eyes caught on something shiny inside a house. "Look at that! A treasure chest." His eyes glinted greedily. Hawk rolled his eyes at his master's hoarding problem as he made a beeline for the house in question. Suddenly, the wind shifted, and Hawk's nose was blasted with a vast variety of scents. He yipped in alarm.

"Yeah, yeah! Bug me all you want, little mutt." Leo blatantly ignored his malak's calls, walking forward heedlessly. He stepped into the doorway of the rotting house. "Nobody else is going to want this…"

He froze.

Right across the doorway he had entered was another doorway, through which a strange figure had stepped through at the same time. Both of them froze simultaneously. Leo's eyes darted between the stranger and the chest. The stranger's eyes darted between Leo and the chest.

Both their eyes narrowed at the same time.

The stranger opened her mouth first. "Well!" She chirped. "I'd say that, as the saying goes, the lady should go first in this case." She took a step towards the chest.

Leo wasn't giving up that easily. He scoffed. "That's a bit sexist, don't you think? I'd say that instead, the gentleman should go first in the interest of a more civil society." He took a step towards the chest.

The stranger grinned behind a long dangling strip of hair in front of her face. "Ah… A worthy adversary."

She laid her hands casually behind the back of her ridiculously pink hat, observing conversationally, "Actually, I was under the impression that a more civil society would provide the elder person with their just desserts." Another step was taken.

Leo shook his head. This was too easy. "Then by that logic, shouldn't I get the chest, since I'm 28?" His brow furrowed as he took another step closer. "How old are you, exactly?"

The stranger's grin grew. She gasped in mock offense, "How dare you sir! What kind of civil person would dare ask a proper woman her age?! I'm shocked! Horrified! Flabbergasted!" She cleared her throat and observed wryly, "I do believe I deserve just compensation for your savagery, wouldn't you agree?" She took two steps forward.

Leo cringed. How did he not see that one coming? He had majorly underestimated her. He had to think fast. "Well, since you've indirectly admitted that you are my elder, I suppose I am therefore honor-bound by society to take possession of your worldly belongings for safekeeping, for the old and senile must be protected by the young and strong." He took two steps forwards.

His adversary observed dryly, "My, my, what a helpful strapping young man. However, you'll be pleased to know that  _this_ senile old woman is perfectly in good health, and in fact, still employed to this very day! So, I'll be taking this treasure chest for safekeeping." She took a long step, nearing dangerously close to the chest.

Leo grunted and drew himself up proudly, deciding to play a different card. "I'll have you know that I am in fact, a veteran, and unemployed at that. I served my time using my life to protect the common folk such as yourself. I believe that the  _countless_ lives of innocents I've saved are more than enough reason for a working elder such as yourself to relinquish some of your already sizeable income." He took a similarly long step.

The two were now nearly nose-to-nose in front of the chest.

Her eyes narrowed. "I don't believe I will. Such is the world we live in. To the victor goes the spoils. Otherwise, some might say that life would not be worth living." She reached out for the treasure chest, slowly.

Leo's eyes narrowed as well. "Is that so? Perhaps we should have a good long discussion over the merits of being completely deaf to the complaints of the common folk. To those who could use such spoils to raise their complete standard of living as opposed to a mere supplicant in their income." His hand rose towards the chest as well.

"Why, I believe we will. After I take what's in MY treasure chest." Her hand landed on the lid of the pristine iron-engraved chest.

"You mean MINE, of course. I saw it first." Leo laid his hand on the spotless glossy lid as well, his eyes never leaving the woman's.

The woman scoffed. "Ohoh! Is that so?" Her expression grew dark. "I'm absolutely certain that  _I_  saw it first. Besides! I'm sure I can put whatever's in here to better use than you ever could."

Leo let out a rough bark of laughter. "Oh? Is that so?" He looked meaningfully down and up, gesturing at the woman's outlandishly pink outfit. "Remind me, what do you do for a living, again?"

The woman's grin grew. Unbeknownst to Leo, her hand inched closer and closer to the lock of the treasure chest.

She declared, "I'm glad you asked! I'm thrilled to introduce you to the wise sorceress who travels the eleven seas, who scoffs at the might of dragons! The illustrious Mazhigi-"

"MAGILOU! LOOK OUT!"

The self-proclaimed sorceress suddenly squeaked as her speech was violently cut short when the chest she was ever-so-subtly opening suddenly  _came alive_  and  _tried to bite her hand off_.

CRASH!

A man wearing purple leapt down from the broken roof of the building and slammed the lid of the apparently  _sentient treasure chest_  shut with his weight before it could pounce on the two of them.

"AHHHH!" The so-called Magilou squealed, diving away from the monster in shock.

"JESUS CHRIST!" Leo squeaked simultaneously as he leapt backwards in reflex.

He gaped as the man in purple leapt off the monster before it burst open violently, avoiding the daemon's lunge and pulling out two short swords. The man began to dance skillfully around the monster's charges as the chest bit at him with its lid. Leo watched incredulously as the man sliced and dodged with a distinctly foreign sword style, holding his own against a daemon.

He shared a glance with the witch gasping for breath on the ground next to him. "You… can have the chest." He breathed.

Magilou shook her head, similarly winded. "No… It's yours. The generous Magilou… insists." She caught her breath and suddenly began cackling to Leo's confusion. "Kahaha! What a rush! To think there are daemons out there disguised as treasure chests!" She languished into the air. "Oh, cruel fates! Must you torture me so?!"

Leo ignored the strange woman and instead focused on the fight going on in front of him. His first instinct was to pick up his gun and help, but still, something felt… off about the man. He made a quick glance to the doorway he'd entered through. His eyes narrowed as he spotted Hawk running towards him, clearly on edge.

"Oh! A puppy! Come to bite me to death as well?" Magilou drawled as she lazily sat up in a cross-legged position. Hawk cocked his head at the strange woman.

Leo shook his head down at his malak. "Ignore her, Hawk. What's wrong?" He asked seriously, keeping an eye on the raging daemon and the man fighting it.

"Talking to a pet? Oh! How quaint! And they say I'm mad!" Magilou commented dryly.

The two ignored her. Hawk gestured urgently at the fighting pair. "What?" Leo asked. "What about them? The chest daemon?" The wolf shook his head quickly.

"…Hold up. Did that wolfie just shake its head?" Magilou rubbed her eyes in surprise.

The two ignored her. Leo concluded, "So the man then. Wait. Is he…"

"Hey! It's rude to ignore a witch you know!" The woman suddenly butted in front of the two.

Leo flinched at the woman's proximity. "Gah! Gerrof!" He exclaimed, dodging her to intrusive form in favor of staring suspiciously at the man in purple and his progress in defeating the daemon.

Safe to say, he was doing pretty well.

"When I'm this close, I won't miss!" The man declared as he charged right in front of the stunned daemon. The man readied both his swords.

"Form 0: Sunder!"

Leo gaped as the man's arte pierced the daemon chest soundly, rending two giant gouges in the front of the chest. It slumped to the floor, motionless. Whatever the man had done had obviously killed the daemon.

"Heh. Not bad." The man commented viciously as he sheathed his swords expertly behind his back. He turned back around to the other two in the house. "Magilou, you've got to be more carefu-"

Leo gasped audibly as he saw the man's face. All of it.

At a first glance, the man in purple seemed to be an ordinary human. That's what Leo had thought at first, he realized as he recognized the face of the man whom had chatted with him in the Bloodwing Butterfly Bar a few nights prior.

But now, in the aftermath of battle, Leo clearly recognized the jarringly bright blood-red eye giving off a harsh red glow. He was a daemon. And a jaw-droppingly powerful one at that.

Hawk began to growl. Leo's muscles began to tense.

"Hm?" The daemon noticed Leo's presence. "Oh! It's you…!" His human eye narrowed as he took in the tell-tale signs of tension in the man's stance. He glanced at the strange wolf pup at his feet.

Magilou abruptly made her presence known again, now leaning against a wall between the two. "My, my, this  _is_ interesting." Leo was surprised to see that her expression had dramatically changed; a calculating and intrigued smirk now twisted her face.

"A lone daemon…" she waved broadly to the man in purple. The arm shifted to gesture at Leo.

"…and a lone exorcist."

Leo's breath quickened as the daemon in front of him began to stare at him as a predator would prey.

"Quite the encounter." Magilou's declarative words punctuated the tense silence that followed. Her fanged smirk widened in anticipation.

Hawk let out a low growl.

"Huh." The man in purple commented seriously, slowly reaching for his sheathed blades behind his back. "So, it turns out you're an exorcist, and I'm a daemon. Funny how the world works."

Leo grunted in return. "And here I'd thought you were a pretty swell person, from that nice living advice you gave me that night." He lifted his arm in preparation to unsheathe his gauntlet blade.

The man in purple huffed a laugh. "What a shocker. Turns out I'm not even a person at all." He gave a savage grin. "Well, since you're an exorcist, it's your job to take out monsters like me, right?"

Leo gave a shrug. "I suppose that's in the job description. I'll be honest though, it's a bit unnerving to see a daemon as human-like as you." He admitted.

The man laughed. "That'll change, don't you worry." His eyes greedily drank in the details of his new foe. "I hope you're good with that blade of yours." His hands landed on the hilts of his blade.

Leo's fists tightened.

The man grinned savagely. "Wouldn't want to fight a weakling!"

With that, the man charged at Leo with shocking speed, unsheathing his blades and holding them out behind him as he charged across the room like a bull.

Leo quickly activated his gauntlet blade and deflected the twin strikes, his feet skidding on the floorboards from the harsh strength behind the blades. Following up quickly, Leo spun his whole body around and swung his blade in retaliation, forcing the daemon to jump backwards a step and give himself room to breathe.

The daemon  _laughed_ as he landed a few steps away. "Not bad! This'll be good practice!" He yelled fiercely as he charged back in, his short swords held at different angles.

Leo cursed as he narrowly dodged one blade whistling over his head and blocked the other. The daemon's moves were incredibly sophisticated and nuanced. There were obviously many, many more years of experience behind those two short swords than Leo's own.

This was bad.

"Hawk!" Leo called urgently as he made a slashing stab at the daemon. His sword was caught in between two crossed blades and locked. His opponent smirked viciously.

In response, Leo's malak howled and cast a fireball at the daemon. The monster cursed and disengaged from the lock as he was forced to dodge the fireball, preventing him from capitalizing on his possession of two blades to Leo's one.

Leo didn't let up and instead went on the offensive, focusing on quick stabbing techniques that gave no ground, pushing the man more and more backwards.

His opponent growled and his red eye glowed. Leo registered the warning signs and quickly abandoned his offensive by diving into a roll to the right. The hairs on the back of his neck stuck up as he felt the heat of an arte roasting the floor where he'd been just a few seconds ago.

Quickly recovering from the roll, Leo pivoted his torso to dodge a follow-up swipe of the daemon's second blade and retaliated with an unorthodox kick to the daemon's ankle. Caught off-guard, the daemon cursed as his leg involuntarily locked for a moment.

Leo abruptly sheathed his blade to the surprise of his opponent.

The man instead bowed his torso forcefully forward, angling his right shoulder towards the daemon. His right hand grasped the barrel of his rifle and jerked it forward while his left hand reached behind to disengage the safety and pull the trigger.

CRACK!

The report of the discharged firearm bounced deafeningly off the walls of the confined space.

"Gah!" The daemon recoiled in pain and surprise as a shock of cold daemon-killing metal entered his left shoulder with an unbelievable amount of force, making him involuntarily drop his left sword. "What the hell-"

"Hawk!"

The malak promptly sent an intense fireball at the daemon whom was helpless to dodge the arte.

"AGH!" The daemon screamed in agony as he burned, falling to the ground and rolling to put the malak flames out. When the flames suddenly puttered out magically, he shifted his body to rise and retaliate when he sharply registered the poke of a blade against his neck. The exorcist stood over his prone body, his gauntlet blade re-extended and poised to slit the daemon's throat.

Leo grimaced at the very human-looking face staring back at him. "Sorry, man." Leo muttered.

Amazingly, the daemon at sword point  _smiled_. "Don't be. You fought well. I lost." He closed his eyes.

Leo gave a stiff nod. He drew back his arm to deliver the fatal blow and save the people this daemon would terrorize next.

Hawk suddenly let out a vicious warning snarl. Leo froze.

" **DEVOUR!"**

Pure luck saved Leo's life as he chose to dive to the left as an enormous blood-red claw swiped viciously through the air where he'd just been occupying.

_Another daemon?! No… a red claw!_

Leo's eyes widened as it registered. The daemon that had escaped Titania. Maimed Oscar. Killed all those exorcists and razed Hellawes. The one Eleanor told him to kill, no matter what.

That  _monster_  was  _here_!

He landed from his roll and leapt away, unsheathing his sword while turning around to face his new opponent.

And then the world froze.

A time, so, so long ago.

A different world made up of a sea of orange leaves.

A distant, tranquil village.

A normal, caring family in a warm household.

A sicky, endearing boy who wanted nothing more than to explore beyond the horizon.

A stout man who wanted nothing more than to safely guide his family through life.

A kind-hearted hunting partner who was full of joy, optimism, and love for her family.

"Velvet…" Leo breathed. "Velvet  _Fucking_  Crowe."

"…Leo?!" The abnormally low yet jarringly familiar voice gasped in response.

The two stared at one another, completely and utterly frozen in time. Each had never expected to see the other ever again. Each had gone through so many different paths and turns. Each had become so different. They were two ships that had encountered each other again in some faraway ocean.

Utterly changed.

Leo's eyes took in the woman standing in front of her in shock. Her carelessly-maintained clothes. Her strikingly long, barely-tamed hair. Her bared sword, slick with fresh blood. Her voice low and growling from disuse. Her jarringly cold eyes. Her harsh, untamed disposition. Most of all…

His eyes fell on the most invasive,  _unnatural_  thing about  _this new Velvet_.

The claw. The vicious, serrated hand of a daemon attached to this twisted rendition of the friend he had treasured.

The claw that  _this Velvet_  had used, knowingly and willingly, to  _kill_  and  _destroy._

And oh, how she had.  _This Velvet_ had been the one who broke out of prison.  _This Velvet_ had been the one who burnt his friend Oscar's eye out.  _This Velvet_ had been the one who had murdered all those exorcists in Hellawes and doomed the city to ruin.  _This Velvet_ had been the one who had taken poor Jason's brave exorcist father away forever.  _This Velvet_ had been the one whom Eleanor had told him to kill.

Leo's fists tightened.

He supposed… people changed. And sometimes for the worse. It would seem that his childhood friend was no different.  _This Velvet_  in front of him was  _not_  the Velvet he called a friend.

 _This Velvet_  was a killer.

Velvet's own mind whirled. The moment she had laid eyes on the man's face; a figment of a past whom she'd disowned; emotions she'd thought she would never feel again had burst out in waves like water out of a bursting dam.

_This can't be. Leo can't be alive. He… must've died over the years. That's what I thought! He must've!_

_No…_

_He's alive. He's alive!_ Despite it all; the years of torture, of agony, of being trapped in the bowels of rage; a shockingly strong part of Velvet's stone-cold heart began to swim to the surface.

_That idiot's still breathing!_

She clamped down on it. There was no room for distractions now.

_I'm not the Velvet he knew. I'm a daemon. It doesn't matter._

_It. Doesn't. Matter._

…And yet, despite her persistence, a disgustingly persistent part of her still sang in joy. Joy that she wasn't alone. That all the villagers of Aball weren't dead by her hand.

That there was someone who could understand her.

_There is nobody who can understand me. I am a monster. A therion. A daemon-eater. I've killed, and I've destroyed. I am nothing more than a daemon with a single goal. That is all._

_And if Leo stands in my way…_

She glanced at her claw for confirmation. Ever-present. It was a part of her now. That was what she was. A monster out for revenge. The claw clenched.

_I'll devour him too. Just like the rest of Aball. For Laphi._

The wind whistled eerily through the silent village outside. Nobody said a word.

The injured daemon lying on the floor glanced between the two in befuddlement. "Uh… guys?" He coughed up blood. "Did I miss something?"

Leo ignored him and looked closer at this new Velvet.

Those eyes… so full of hatred. So full of malice… Were those really the same eyes as the woman whom he had hunted with? Chatted with? Laughed with? Were those really the eyes of Velvet Crowe, the older sister of a remote frontier town who wanted nothing more than to make her brother happy?

No.

They weren't.

These were the eyes of a murderer. Of a monstrous, unreasonable daemon. Daemons… Monsters who destroyed villages without thought. Leo's eyes widened as a horrible thought came to his head.

Was she one of them? One of the daemons who had destroyed Aball?

Was that why Artorius had said she was 'gone'?! Was that why Artorius didn't tell him what had really happened?!

No way. There was no way. She was so loving and kind to everyone in the village. The Velvet Crowe he knew loved the village of Aball and would've liked nothing more than a quiet, peaceful life with her family.

There was no way…

_There was no way a human would do that._

… _But aren't daemons inhuman?_

Leo sucked in a breath. He had to know.

"Velvet." He tasted the name that he hadn't used to address anyone in years.

"Aball… You didn't… did you?" He asked, deceptively quietly.

The woman across from her stared at him, her eyes getting colder and colder at the accusation. There was no need for clarification.

Her terrifying claw tightened into a fist.

"I did."

The answer was so…  _infuriatingly_  nonchalant. She had just admitted it as if she'd just told him what she'd eaten for dinner!

Leo closed his eyes in consternation. "You're… not the Velvet I knew, are you." He breathed. It was a statement of fact, not a question, and they both knew it.

"Obviously." The response was cold and callous.

"Then… I suppose it doesn't matter what face you wear." Leo shook his head vigorously, clenching his fists in mounting determination. "I'll just… have to make sure the monster you've turned into doesn't ruin anymore lives." He met those familiar eyes with determination flaring in his own.

"I'll put you down for good,  _daemon_." He declared firmly, his stance hardening.

For the briefest of moments, Leo thought he saw a flash of hurt in Velvet's eyes. He blinked. And when his eyes opened again, the woman's amber eyes were hard. Cold. As if no emotion had ever touched them. The eyes of a killer. There was nothing left of Velvet in this monster.

"You're welcome to try,  _exorcist_."

With that, she exploded into action.

Caught completely off-guard, Leo grunted in pain as a surprise kick slammed into him with inhuman strength, hurtling him towards the wall of the house. The rotten wood snapped laughably easily; he crashed entirely through the wall and into the daylight.

Leo grunted in pain as he landed hard, his lever-action rifle digging painfully into his back as he struggled to find his bearings.

He cursed as he registered the ominous silhouette of a monster in the cloud of debris in the wall. A sword on one arm and a massive claw sprouting from the other.

He got to his feet and crossed blades with his former hunting partner as she rammed into him with terrifying ferocity, his boots digging through the grass from the force.

No, the daemon who  _looked_  like his former hunting partner. This wasn't Velvet.

With a yell, he shoved the daemon off from his body and promptly called out for his malak. "Hawk!"

Velvet swiftly leapt into the air, dodging the fireball sent at her feet. In retaliation, the woman flew with the grace of a vengeful ghost towards Leo, a steel boot headed his way.

He grunted as he raised his sword just in time to parry the hidden blade he knew Velvet kept in her boots. Leaning with the momentum, Leo instead used the opportunity to swing her boot in the other direction in an effort to throw off her momentum.

Instead, Velvet simply twisted around in the air and bent her knee with the swing, bringing her other foot about with the given momentum.

CRACK!

Leo grunted as the steel-hard boot slammed into his skull and sent him flying into the dirt, involuntarily groaning in pain. Hawk took the opportunity to harry the daemon with fireballs, forcing her to dodge the rain of mana-intensive artes while Leo regained his bearings.

Shaking his head free of stars, Leo reached for his rifle and cocked it.

Velvet twitched at the familiar telltale sound.

CRACK!

The daemon swiftly dodged the familiar projectile with a backflip, the round merely slicing through a few strands of raven hair along the way before burying itself into a nearby wall. She landed gracefully and charged at Leo, roaring a battle cry.

Leo parried with his gauntlet blade, stepping back and returning with a precise stab. The daemon pivoted cleanly away and then retaliated with a sharp acrobatic kick. The man barely managed to sidestep the move and in return sliced at the offending appendage with his sword.

The daemon hissed as the blade made contact, slicing a light gash into her leg. Not letting up, Leo hounded after her, forcing her to back off slightly and leave him some breathing room.

Making up his mind in an instant, the man indicated succinctly with his left hand. Hawk quickly got the message and howled, charging directly at Velvet, forcing her to focus on defending herself from both the flaming artes and the threat of being bitten.

With a furious cry, Velvet leapt forward past the artes and sliced at the little pest. At the last possible second, the wolf vanished abruptly in a flash of green.

"What?!" She gasped, glancing around warily and realizing that her opponent was nowhere to be seen. "…Hiding, are we?" Velvet muttered dryly as her eyes leapt from building to building.

"You always were a coward." She spat venomously.

CHINK-CHINK!

Velvet whirled around in surprise to find the man a few houses down in the middle of the path, the metal barrel of his rifle trained directly upon her.

Click.

Time slowed down. The trigger had already been pulled. There was no way she could dodge. She would have to take the hit.

CRACK!

_A malak?!_

Of all the things Leo had expected to find with the murderous daemon wearing the face of his long-lost friend, a malak wearing the clothes indicating service to the Abbey was not one of them. The malak looked like a damned kid. A kid that looked disturbingly familiar.

One had leapt in front of the daemon he was shooting to kill.

Velvet's eyes widened in a shocking display of emotion.

"LAPHICET!"

The scream was irrational and automatic. The howl of an older sister watching her beloved brother put himself in danger.

PING!

The fired bullet bounced harmlessly off the Malak's raised shield arte.

And just like that, the world turned on its head. Again. Leo's eyes bulged.

No… no. This wasn't right. None of this was right.

A monster wouldn't've done that. A monster wouldn't've named a kidnapped malak after the brother she used to love with all her being. None of this made any sense.

Everything Leo had seen up until this point told him to keep fighting. To kill this daemon. Daemons weren't human anymore. They were wild, crazed, irrational beasts whose only purpose was to kill and destroy. They were evil. And nothing more.

…But what kind of evil monster would see her brother in a kidnapped tool?

He raised his gaze above the metal sights of his rifle.

The daemon…

…No,  _Velvet_  was absolutely livid. Irrationally livid. There was so much anger in those eyes; so much emotion.

So much  _human_  emotion. The emotional, irrational drive to protect one's sibling.

And then, suddenly, he was somewhere else.

He was back in a warm house in Aball, staying up too late with Laphi. Talking about ships, travelling, the world; the future. He was scared for his life while Laphi hid in the covers in fear of his sister's loving wrath, grinning sheepishly as he faced down Velvet glaring at him with her wrathful amber eyes.

Right now, those  _same_  eyes were glaring angrily back at him, zeroing in hatefully on the perceived threat to her beloved brother's well-being.

This was her. This was Velvet Crowe.

All the things; all the terrible things she had done. The destruction of Hellawes. The raiding of Vortigern. The killing of Jason's father and the orphaning of a son. The killing of dozens of other exorcists simply doing their duties to protect their families.

She was a monster.

But… she was also Velvet.

She was still human, even if only partially.

Only a human could do something as stupidly sentimental as naming an emotionless Malak with her dead brother's name and then REACTING to it being in danger as if it were her brother. This was her.

Suddenly, he didn't want to fight anymore. This was Velvet.

He gave an incredulous laugh, breaking the tense silence. His laughter was so out of place that Velvet's ire wavered, causing her to hesitate in charging at man. All of a sudden, that hugely pressing sense of mortal peril had vanished. He knew, no matter what, that his old hunting partner would not kill him.

He needed to talk to her. Properly. He needed to figure out what was going through her head to make her do such things. There must be a reason. Another side to the story. Because she was human. She wasn't a mindless monster. He'd bet his life on that.

And there was no way the human Velvet he remembered would commit such horrific acts unless there was a very _, very_ good motivator.

He needed to know. She deserved that much from him, at least.

"I'm done. That does it. You…" Leo fully lowered his rifle and stepped out of firing stance. "You're you, Velvet." He breathed.

The shock and undercurrent of horror running through Velvet's eyes broke Leo's heart.

 _She's been broken._  He realized.

The woman stammered, grasping for a response. "No… I… I…" Her body shook with emotion. Hope, despair, longing, and self-hatred. All of it boiled in her mind all at once.

She shook her head violently and forced herself to look at the ever-present claw of her left hand. The red haze came back, on command. All of it. The hatred, the motivation, the commitment to being evil.  _Good_.

She roared, "…I am NOT!"

With a wordless scream of fury, the monster charged at her old friend, her angry red claw raised high.

Leo would not lie to himself. He was absolutely scared  _shitless_.

But, he was calling her bluff. And he'd stick with his guns.

On that mental note, he gently tossed his own gun on the ground some ways away from him for safekeeping. This only served enrage Velvet further at the GALL of this pathetic exorcist and his naïve assumptions.

As she neared him, he did nothing. Nothing but face her with a sad expression. Haunted by what had happened to his old friend. He knew she was trying in vain to convince both him and herself of her own monstrosity.

Because she didn't want to accept herself for who she really was.

Leo cried out involuntarily in pain as Velvet's daemon claw violently encased his entire body, the wickedly sharp claws tearing deep and bloody gouges into his stomach. His entire body felt like it was on fire. His boots left the ground as he was lifted up easily by the monster's inhuman strength.

He was completely and utterly at the mercy of this raging, unstable daemon.

"I am  _not_ the Velvet you know." She hissed furiously. "That person…" Velvet shook her head crazily. "…that person is  _DEAD_!" She cried in a tone verging on hysteria. "I am a monster! I am a therion! The only thing I want is…" She clenched her eyes in emotion.

"…IS REVENGE FOR LAPHICET!"

The claw began to come alarmingly alive around Leo, pulsating and undulating around him. Suddenly he began to feel weaker and weaker, as if his very life force was being forcefully sucked away by the second. He abruptly realized with grave certainty what was going to happen.

He was about to die.

_Revenge… for Laphi…?_

And yet, Leo smiled. A sick, delusional, nostalgic smile. Despite the peril, a memory came to mind. A warm, obscure, ridiculously fuzzy detail at utter odds with the chaos of the present.

He choked out a weak laugh that rang out over the squelching of the devouring hand. "I always said so, didn't I?" He met Velvet's crazed, irrational,  _familiar_  eyes with a warm smile.

"You always were a real  _daemon_  when it came to your brother."

And just like that, all the rage fled in an instant. No matter how hard she grasped, her insatiable rage, her old companion, her only constant in the last three years; all of a sudden was nowhere to be found. Here was a real fragment of the past, a person she had called a friend. A person whom had trusted her with his life and had almost become part of her family. A family she thought she'd lost forever.

That idiot was  _here_. And he  _still trusted her_. He  _knew her_. Who she… was? Who she… is?

In that moment of immobilizing,  _terrifying_  uncertainty, she didn't know what to think.

Leo crashed roughly onto the ground as the claw consuming him abruptly released him. He immediately hacked up congealed blood onto the grass, gazing up weakly at his old hunting partner standing uncertainly before him. Hawk appeared from inside him and whined over his master's broken body, quickly starting to heal the bloodiest gashes on his stomach.

Leo rubbed his wolf's fur gratefully, noting wryly, "I knew Artorius was bullshitting me when he told me you were gone." He coughed, meeting the woman's wavering eyes. "You're not. You're still here."

With that name, Velvet's anger resurged like a wave with awesome intensity. That was right. She was a monster hell-bent on revenge.

"…Artorius? How…" She asked in a low, trembling voice.

Leo hacked out more blood, waving off Hawk who wined in worried protest. He stumbled to his feet with effort, at length forcing his legs to move so he could reach his rifle laying on the floor. He picked it up, wiping the dirt off the receiver with care and turned his attention back on the daemon. "Yeah. The Almighty Shepherd. Savior of the world. Head of the Abbey and de-facto ruler of the entire Holy Midgand Empire. I'm sure you've heard of him."

He let out a hiss as he bent his arm awkwardly to reach inside his coat, pulling out a few gels and slathering them on the skin underneath his shirt. He then reached back in and grabbed a roll of bandages, wrapping them around his wounds. "I've been all over the world, Velvet." He winced in pain as he tightened the bindings. "I'm sure you'll want to hear more about it."

Velvet's eyes narrowed in impatience. "Tell me. Now." The command was cold. "What do you know about my target?" Her anger mounted. "Or I'll suck it out of you." The terrifying claw rose in the air, hovering above the man ominously.

… _Her target?_

Leo sighed and paused in his medical self-treatment, meeting Velvet's eyes calmly. "You're not going to, Velvet. You're not." He rose a single questioning eyebrow.

She wouldn't, and they both knew it.

Everything.  _Every_ fiber in Velvet's being told her to grab this man – this arrogant, cowardly man who had the  _gall_ to ignore her threats – and torture him. Squeeze every last secret out of her that might be beneficial towards her revenge. That was all she lived for after all, wasn't it? And after every last useful word had been uttered from his mouth, she would kill him and devour him, leaving no clues to for his exorcist buddies to find and follow.

But she didn't. The claw hung in the air, trembling.

The wind blew through the town, the only sound in the unbroken silence.

"Whoa! What the hell?!"

And it was broken. Leo looked behind him surprise as the daemon in purple clothes, the witch Magilou, and the man he recognized from the bar in Loegres approached the two motionless fighters led by the little malak called Laphicet.

The man in the trench coat asked roughly, "What the hell's going on here?"

"What?!" Magilou gave out astonished commentary. "Has the insatiable daemon eater been sated? Gasp! Does someone have a tummy ache?!" She cooed.

Leo blinked.

_I guess they're all with Velvet…_

He started as the woman in question growled behind him. He turned to watch her shake her head sharply and, to Leo's shock, turn her claw back to a normal-looking arm wrapped in bandages.

_How the hell…?_

She whipped her now-normal left arm back down to her side and turned on her heel, stalking off.

"He's coming with us." She called shortly behind her.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa – what?!" The daemon swordsman exclaimed in disbelief. "We're bringing an  _exorcist_  with us?! Just like that?!"

Velvet sighed and stopped, explaining over her shoulder, "He'll give us information on Artorius."

Both the daemon and the man in the trench coat looked in disbelief at Leo. Leo, for his part, gave a simple shrug. "…You heard the woman. I guess I'm tagging along." He supplied, firmly knotting the bandages around his waist with a grunt.

"Leo?" The softly spoken shorthand sounded so agonizingly familiar to Leo. It sounded almost like the Velvet he used to know. He turned to look at his former hunting partner.

Her face went dark. "If you run, acquaintance or not, I don't care. I won't risk you going back to the Abbey. You're my dinner." It was a promise. He didn't doubt it for a second.

Leo laughed nervously. He responded with a lofty wave, "Wouldn't dream of it, honey."

To the man's surprise, Velvet responded with a distinctly human-sounding scoff. He smiled, despite himself.

Still Velvet indeed.

With the threat having been given, the clawed daemon walked briskly off.

Meanwhile, the rest of the group just stood there watching the woman walk off in shock. The daemon in purple blinked a few times before letting out a resigned sigh. "I just can't get her." He ran his fingers through his hair, inadvertently displaying his blood red eye and blackened face to Leo.

_This guy too… so human._

The daemon noticed Leo staring. He tensed.

And then the daemon grinned. "I guess we're travelling together now." he observed dryly. He asked conversationally, "What's your story with her anyways? I take it you know her…"

For his part, Leo was valiantly suppressing the urge to reach for his rifle and continue fighting the daemon standing nonchalantly in front of him. The years he'd spent believing that these things couldn't be human had left deep prejudices in his mind that wouldn't be overcome in an instant.

He took a shaky breath, "Sorry man. Not quite used to the whole…" he waved his hand vaguely. "'Daemons-that-are-human-like' thing yet. Not enough for chit-chat, at least." His eyes wandered anywhere but the daemon's clearly inhuman features.

"Ah, fair enough." The daemon nodded sagely. "I guess things will eventually get clearer as they go along anyways." He gave the exorcist an appraising look. "Well, we can try this for starters." He offered a hand, to Leo's surprise. "The name's Rokurou Rangetsu. You're a good fighter." He commented genuinely.

Leo stared at the daemon called Rokurou in shock for a few seconds. He blinked a few times, staring at the offered hand before sighing.

"…Fuck it." He muttered to himself.

He clasped firm hands with the daemon and shook. "Leonex Davidson. And you're not exactly a pushover yourself. I'll openly admit that I only won 'cuz I had an unfair advantage of surprise." He pointed with a thumb over his shoulder at his rifle.

Rokurou glanced at the weapon with interest, then waved a dismissive hand. "Ah, nonsense. All's fair in love and war. Besides," his eyes, both human and demonic, gained a rather manic glint while his smile seemed to grow fangs. "Heh. It just means I need to get better."

Leo's eye twitched as the man walked off, grinning madly.  _Yaksha. Definitely a Yaksha._ He concluded.

"So, you're an exorcist."

Leo turned around to see the man from the bar strolling over. He cringed. "You're not going to tell me you're a daemon too, right?"

The man shook his head. "No."

Leo sighed in relief. "Oh good. At least there's one other normal human here."

The man shook his head again. "Wrong. I'm not human."

"Huh?"

His eyes narrowed.

"I'm the Reaper." He declared darkly.

Leo blinked. "…Fuck's sake." He sighed in resignation.

Shaking his head, he offered a resigned hand. "Well then, Mr. Reaper. The name's Leonex Davidson. Thanks for the life advice on ship steering."

The man clasped Leo's hand with a fighter's grasp. "Eizen. Did it work out for you?" He asked.

Leo glanced sourly over his shoulder where Velvet had disappeared. "Hell if I know, Eizen. you'll be the first one to know if it does."

The man grinned sharply. "Aye, that's life for you." He gave a rough encouraging pat on Leo's back. "Keep sailing."

Leo nodded appreciatively. As Eizen walked off, he turned around to the rest of the group. …And was faced with the one thing he did  _not_ want to see this far away from the Abbey.

"BIIEEEEEENNN! Leo! PLEASE! I beg you! SAVE ME FROM THE BAD-BAD!"

Leo recoiled as a familiar malak suddenly popped out of nowhere and pounced on him, tearing at his clothing and staining it wet with tears.

"Jesus Christ! Bienfu?!" He stammered. "How in the-?"

WHACK!

Leo gaped as the witch from before, Magilou, nonchalantly smacked the absolute stuffing out of Bienfu. With a little self-righteous hmph, the witch knelt down and collected the defeated malak by the ribbon.

"Bieeeeeeeeeeeeen…" The malak could only mumble in shock as spit dribbled down his chin.

"I'm glad you're with us, Leo-boy!" The witch chirped casually, as if she hadn't just absolutely destroyed a praetor's greater malak in the previous moment. Her eyes narrowed deviously. "You'll be making things much, much more interesting for the near future, I'm sure." Her expression hardened. "But be warned! The great Magillanica will  _not_ tolerate any stealing of treasure chests in the future!" she declared pompously. With that, she twirled around and sauntered after the group, crying malak dangling in hand.

Leo stared.

"…Yep." He concluded aloud. "I'm the only normal human here."

He blinked. "…I guess I know who Bienfu's original owner was then." His eyes narrowed. "But that begs the question. Did she steal him from Eleanor…?" He shook his head. What a mess. Eleanor would have a fit if she saw him right then; that much was for sure.

Leo suddenly noticed a blob of golden hair trailing after the witch giving him a few curious glances. The man called out after the malak. "Laphicet!" The name tasted strangely on his mouth.

The malak stopped walking and turned fully to the newcomer, head tilted adorably to the side in curiosity. "Yes?" He asked in a youthful voice.

"Thanks for getting involved."

Simple. If Laphicet hadn't gotten between himself and Velvet, one of the two of them would've been dead. And he was pretty sure it would've been him if that were the case.

Leo added, "And I'm really sorry for shooting you." He gave an apologetic grin. "It was kind of an accident."

The boy nodded hesitantly. "You're… welcome. And…"

"…I forgive you."

Laphicet tasted the words strangely.

That having been said, the boy hesitantly turned back around and went back to following the group, sending few curious glances over his shoulder as he did so.

Leo watched the boy leave. "I can see why she gave him that name…"The exorcist muttered to himself. He sighed. "…What a fucking mess." His mind whirled with the implications of his choice to follow Velvet.

The last thing he wanted to do was to go up against his old exorcist friends. He was bound to if he followed this particular daemon. But… despite how illogical it was, he still found himself wanting to follow his old friend out of sentiment. And worry.

She was human. She definitely was still the person he remembered. But at the same time, she wasn't.

Just what had happened to her? The things she had done… Why did she seek revenge for Laphicet? And why against Artorius, of all people?!

He needed more answers. And the only way to get them… would be from the daemon's mouth. And after that…

Leo ran a hand through his hair as he shouldered his gun.

After that he'd judge if the monster Velvet Crowe had become was worthy of redemption in his eyes.

He sighed and began to walk, following in the footsteps of the villains he'd be travelling with. For better or for worse.

"…Why the hell do I make life so complicated for myself?" He muttered self-deprecatingly.

Down by his heels, Hawk coughed something distinctly sarcastic.

"Shut up, you."


	15. C13 - Reasons

**Chapter 13 – Reasons.**

GROWL!

"Ah!" Laphicet's face grew redder than a tomato as his stomach made a particularly loud growl, the sound reaching everybody in the group as they travelled in silence along the Danann Highway.

Rokurou burst out laughing. "Kahaha! Already kid? You had mabo curry just this morning when we left!"

GROWL…

The malak cringed as his stomach groaned again in protest. "I'm sorry… It's just whenever I think of Tabatha's curry, my stomach just feels empty again no matter what I eat!" His eyes shined greedily.

Magilou sighed theatrically. "The kiddo's insatiable. One would think that the old lady's mabo curry was actually a curse in disguise with the amount of suffering it's wrought."

Eizen grunted darkly. "There are worse curses, you know."

The witch shrugged nonchalantly. "Maybe not. Even the Reaper's Curse pales in comparison to the curse of eternal hunger."

Her face darkened. "Now, after one hath received a taste of the scrumptious mabo curry, one realizes that all other foods are utterly tasteless in comparison! They  _pale_  in utterly pathetic comparison to the mighty Bloodwing Butterfly Mabo Curry!" She leapt forward enthusiastically. "The true curse is when one realizes that nothing,  _nothing_ will ever taste as good as that oh so salty yet oh so spicy delicious  _curry!_ "

GROWL.

"S-stop it, Magilou!" Laphicet whined in protest. "That's not true! I still find other kinds of food just as tasty!"

Rokurou grinned. "That's good. One has to taste the dullest and most watered-down wine in order to fully savor the more exquisite and flavorful alcohol." He shook his head sagely. "Treat this as a life lesson, Laphicet. Life is all about variety. If you ate mabo curry all day, you'd get sick of it! But if you only eat mabo curry once, I don't know, a month? Your life would be so much richer and well-rounded!"

Eizen grunted. "He's right, you know. Only by spending weeks away from land in the open ocean will one truly understand the pure joy of having two feet on solid land."

Laphicet's eyes were wide. "That makes sense!" He cringed. "But… a month without mabo curry still sounds horrible."

Eizen nodded dead seriously. "Such is life. The quicker you come to accept this fact, the more you'll grow."

Magilou slumped forward in exasperation. "…The real curse is having to listen to you two prattle on about philosophy all day." She muttered. "Geez, can't you let the kid loosen up a bit?"

Rokurou grinned deviously. "What, and let  _you_  teach him life lessons? The kid would end up more twisted than a dead knot on a ship!"

Magilou yelled in indignation, "What?! Slander! The brilliant witch Magilou is a fantastic influence on children and grown-ups alike! All come from around the land to witness her nuance!"

Laphicet cocked his head. "But Magilou? If that's true, then how come the people we meet don't even know how to pronounce your name?"

Magilou cringed. "Because I have unfortunately fallen from grace. I've been locked away by the infidels for far too long! The populous has grown abhorrently ignorant of the goodness and grace of the great Magilou's Menagerie!"

Rokurou deadpanned. "You were only in that jail with me and Velvet for three years, tops."

"And that good sir, is three years of a world without a soul!" the witch declared miserably. "Oh! How I have fallen… To have to prove myself to a daemon! Woe upon me!" She slumped to the ground, heedless of the others walking on without her.

Laphicet patted her gently on the back. "It's okay, Magilou! Life's all about variety, right?"

Magilou sobbed theatrically into her arm. "Oh, and now the kid's consoling  _me_! Is this truly the end?! Is the great Magilou doomed to fade away into obscurity, with only daemons and malakhim to console her?!" She bawled into the air. The rest of the group ignored her and kept walking.

Leo's eye twitched.

He exchanged glances with Hawk at his feet. He commented dryly, "I think I'm the most normal one here." He slapped a palm to his face. "…And that says something, considering I'm  _not from this world_."

Hawk whined in empathy.

Leo's ears perked as he caught wind of Velvet's callous voice.

"We'll stop here for lunch. Laphicet. Don't apologize. Remember what I told you about your stomach; it's just a sign that you're alive."

Leo blinked as he watched the woman pull the malak away from the witch in exasperation, indicating to the others to make camp off the beaten track. He shook himself and trotted forward from his trailing position, approaching the group as they began to shuffle around setting up camp.

"I find that to be quite an… interesting interpretation." He remarked dryly, giving the daemon a wry grin as he stepped up to her.

Velvet's eyes narrowed as her gaze fell on the problematic wrench in her plans. She responded just as dryly, "And I find your face to be quite suitable for my palate." She flexed her bandaged hand meaningfully.

Leo's eyes glanced at her fear-inducing arm. He scoffed lightly. "I don't know about that. I've seen Hawk's face when he bites me. Apparently, I don't taste very good."

Velvet looked down at the malak, remembering her old friend's new occupation. "That's right. Your tool, correct?"

Hawk huffed self-righteously. Leo chuckled, shaking his head. "Nope. This guy's my trusted friend." He looked down fondly at his wolf.

Velvet blinked. "I thought all Abbey exorcists sealed away tethered malakhim wills?"

Leo shrugged. "Most of them do. I, on the other hand, was never fully enlisted into the Abbey." He explained. "I got permission to learn artes without following orders."

"…Did Artorius let you join?" Leo blinked at the venom with which Velvet spat the Shepherd's formal name out. He'd never heard Velvet call her brother-in-law anything but by the nickname 'Arthur.' It was jarring, to say the least.

He got over it. "Yeah, he did." He elaborated at Velvet's serious look, "Long story short, I never met the man face to face for the longest time but managed to get my name to him in the meanwhile. He let me join for whatever reason while agreeing to allow me to serve them in my own terms."

He sighed as he watched the group gather firewood for a campfire, chatting amongst themselves lightly. "I'd thought that daemons were nothing but an evil scourge upon the land, completely unreasonable and despicable. I've spent the past three years as a pseudo-exorcist, killing daemons and helping people as best I could."

"…What made  _me_  different?" Velvet asked pointedly.

Leo smiled sadly. "Like I said earlier, it's because you're you." At Velvet's narrowed eyes, he interrupted her. "Whatever you say, I know that you're you. And that's that." He sighed and looked up at the sky. "The fact you didn't kill me says as much."

"…" She was silent in response to that.

Leo glanced back down at her. "I need to know, Velvet. What in the seven hells  _happened_  to you?" He asked urgently. "What made you do such  _horrible_  things? I know there must be a reason behind all this." He took a step forward. "You've gotta tell me!" He pleaded.

Velvet glared at him coldly. "So you can scurry back to your precious Abbey and tell Artorius everything about his would-be assassin as soon as you get the chance to escape?"

Leo shook his head and opened his mouth to explain it all. His hatred for the Abbey. His genuine need to know what had happened to his old friend.

"Hey! Velvet! Get over here and start cooking! The boy's starving!" Rokurou called from across camp, interrupting Leo.

"Tch." Velvet walked away from him without a second glance.

The man sighed and shook his head in resignation. He was in this for the long run. Might as well take things slow.

He rubbed his temples in agitation. Making life difficult for himself indeed.

* * *

Leo's mouth watered as the deliciously familiar aroma of the porridge simmering on top of the camp fire wafted in his direction.

"…Oh gods. That smells  _so good_. I haven't eaten for  _hours_!" He groaned, fidgeting in his place across the campfire from the daemon who was  _cooking_.

Laphicet smiled sympathetically at the man's side, closing his eyes and inhaling blissfully. "Yeah. It does." He agreed. "Velvet's cooking is always the best!"

"Of course." Leo grinned nostalgically. "Just like I remember." He breathed.

Velvet herself glanced up at the two eager souls across the campfire from her, salivating shamelessly. It was so… familiar. Cooking for Laphicet and Leo.

Although this time, it was a different Laphicet.

…But at the same time, it was also the same Leo.

She sighed in exasperation. "Both of you, simmer down. It'll be at least five more minutes before the oats are thoroughly cooked." She berated as she stirred the pot.

"Can I taste test it again?" Laphicet bounced up and down at the mere thought.

Velvet shook her head sternly. "You tasted it already. There's no need. We know it's sweet enough."

Laphicet whined in dismay. Leo saw an opening and took it. "So… can  _I_ taste it?" He asked hopefully. "Maybe I can add further culinary input? Multiple perspectives can achieve great deeds, you know."

Velvet rolled her eyes. " _No_ , Leo. Quit asking and be patient, both of you." She berated the two vultures hovering over her cooking.

Leo sighed theatrically, leaning back in the grass reluctantly. "It was worth a try, at least." His brow furrowed. "So… you really can't taste…" He muttered softly.

Velvet set her jaw and shook her head. "Not completely." Her eyes narrowed. "I can taste blood."

Just another sign of her inhumanity.

Leo took a moment to glance at the boy sitting next to him. A shining sign of her humanity, he reminded himself.

He shook his head. "I'm sorry." He breathed softly.

Velvet gave a scoff. "Sorry, huh?" She promptly whipped the soup ladle out of the pot and catapulted some hot porridge at Leo's face with pinpoint accuracy.

"Gah!" Leo recoiled.

"Save your sympathy. I'm a daemon, after all." Velvet let out roughly, returning the soup ladle back to the pot.

 _So I've heard…_ Leo muttered mentally. Suddenly, he realized exactly what he now had on his face. He slyly licked the porridge off his face.

Laphicet, realizing the man's dastardly ploy, yelled in dismay. "What?! That's not fair! Velvet!" He tattle-tailed.

Velvet's eyes narrowed at her old hunting partner's sheepish look, caught red-handed. "Idiot." She muttered. "Eating raw oats is bad for your digestion."

Leo swallowed, relishing the sweet morsel of porridge without shame. He waved her off arrogantly. "Ah, keep a lid on it, ya nagging hag." He smirked.

Laphicet gulped audibly next to him. The temperature seemed to instantly drop by ten degrees despite the sun shining high above and the fire burning merrily between them. Suddenly, Leo wasn't so sure about whether his old friend would kill him. He promptly waved his hands in front of him as disarmingly as possible.

"Kidding! Kidding! I'm kidding, Velvet!" He let out quickly.

Velvet's fists curled dangerously. Laphicet worryingly began to edge away from Leo. Like a rat fleeing a sinking ship.

Leo grinned nervously. "Come on, Velvet! You know me! It was just a bit of fun!"

"Oh yeah?" Velvet muttered deceptively quietly. "I'll show you a bit of fun!" With that, the enraged banshee leapt up and over the campfire, clearing the pot by a wide margin, and violently assaulted Leo with the soup lade.

"Ow! Ow, Ow! Christ, Velvet! It was a joke!" Leo cried as he recoiled from the assault, scrambling to his feet and fleeing, the wrathful daemon hot on his heels. "Help! Somebody! Anybody! HELP!" He called in vain.

"Mmmf!"

Leo's calls were muffled as he was promptly wrapped up in a chokehold by a properly enraged daemon, glaring viciously down at its prey. "Now, what did you call me?!" The daemon asked darkly with satisfaction.

Back at the campfire, Laphicet shuddered as the man let out more muffled cries of agony, a lade full of burning-hot oats being shoved down his throat. Suddenly, his nose reminded him of the now unattended soup of delicious porridge, waiting to be tasted.

He subtly reached for the pot.

"Don't you  _dare_ , Laphicet!" The vicious snarl cut through the air.

Laphicet flinched, leaping away from the pot as if scalded. "I-I won't!" He called back unconvincingly.

Sometimes, Velvet could be  _really_ scary.

Leo's cries of pain echoed throughout the surrounding hills.

* * *

"So… Remind me again, what's the story between you two?" Rokurou asked curiously after the group had finished eating and had gotten back on the main thoroughfare headed to Port Zekson.

Leo winced as he rubbed his throat, the scars of his terrible punishment at the hands of the vicious daemon still raw. He threw a glance over to Velvet, stalking ahead of the group as was apparently usual. He offered to Rokurou, "We used to know each other, three years ago."

Laphicet asked, "So… before the Advent?"

Leo nodded. "We used to hunt together."

Magilou connected the dots the quickest. "Oh!" She clapped her hands. "So, what you mean to say is that you knew our great and fearsome leader before she came down with that horrid affliction that scorns the very heavens itself?!"

Leo blinked. "If you're talking about daemonblight, yes." His eyes fell to the ground pensively. "I'd always thought she'd died three years ago that night on the Advent."

Rokurou put a thoughtful hand on his chin. "That explains it." He remarked. "Must've been quite the shocker when you found out she was still alive, and a daemon no less."

"Hah." Leo let out a bark of laughter. "Must've been quite the shocker for her as well I'd imagine. Her old hunting partner turned exorcist, a profession dedicated to eradicating her kind."

Magilou's eyes glinted. "How poetic! Two friends turned mortal enemies by nothing more than a cruel twist of fate!" She faltered. "…But then instead of a dramatic fight to the death, all we got to show for it was a few teensy punches thrown and then a kiss and make up!" She languished.

Leo blinked at the witch's… weirdness. He shook his head. "I'd hardly call this a 'kiss and make up.' I am technically your guys' prisoner, after all."

"You know," Rokurou noted, "for a prisoner, you don't particularly seem too intent on escaping your fate. Whatever Velvet has in store for you, that is."

Laphicet spoke up curiously. "Are you… following us so that you can talk to Velvet?"

Leo blinked in surprise at the kid's empathy. "…Yeah. That's exactly right." His eyes were drawn to the back of the daemon he called his friend.

"I… I want to know what exactly happened to her." He said seriously. "In my time with the Abbey, I've been following in her footsteps for a while now." He looked away. "I've seen the bodies of the men she's killed. The towns and fortresses that she's devastated. She's changed… So much."

Eizen, who had been listening silently all this time, spoke up. "So why?" He asked. "Why did you decide to stop fighting her?"

Leo met the reaper's eyes. He admitted honestly, "I'm… not entirely sure." He sighed. "There's not too much reason behind why I'm following you guys." His eyes were slowly drawn to the malak kid watching him curiously. "I just… had a feeling that this Velvet was still someone I knew, despite it all." He mumbled.

Laphicet's eyes were wide. "What was she like, before she turned into a daemon?" He asked innocently.

The man smiled nostalgically. "She was kind and dedicated. Loving." He grinned. "She loved to cook. She worked hard to help her sickly brother and cared for her with all her being." He sighed suddenly, the smile fading from his face. "You know… Some part of me really doesn't want to know what happened, actually. Why Artorius is the person she wants to kill…" He shook his head. "…There's only a few possible reasons why the Velvet I knew would go to such dreadful lengths for vengeance."

Laphicet was about to respond when suddenly a howl rang out throughout the valley, startling everyone in the group.

"Damn." Eizen muttered. "More of them."

Leo furrowed his brow as he reached for his rifle. "More?"

Rokurou explained as he pulled out his short swords, "We ran into a group of daemons back in that village we met you in. We had already killed all of the ones back there before we ran into you, but I guess the Abbey hasn't been doing as good of a job of killing all the daemons around here as they said they've done."

Leo grunted in surprise. "Daemons killing daemons?"

Rokurou grinned fiercely, twirling his swords. "Of course. How else would we get stronger?"

"Cut the chatter!" Velvet interrupted as she beckoned them forward, ordering the group to regroup at her position. Leo followed the rest of the group and pulled out his rifle as the rest of the group got into combat stance. The howls from over the hill grew louder in volume.

Velvet took a glance over her shoulder at Leo, glancing questioningly at his rifle. "You're helping us daemons?" She asked pointedly.

Leo shook his head. "Nah. I'm killing daemons." He explained. "Who I fight with is irrelevant."

"Do as you like." Velvet dismissed before turning around and calling out to the rest of the group, "Stay sharp! Sounds like a lot of them."

Leo muttered quietly under his breath a comment meant only for his friend. "…I suppose it'll be just like hunting prickleboars again, huh?"

Despite herself, Velvet found herself smirking at that.

The howls peaked as a mixed pack of daemons charged over the hill above the group and began streaming down to attack the group of travelers.

Rokurou, Eizen, and Velvet instantly kicked off to meet the daemons in their charge, sprinting rapidly up the hill towards the fastest daemons. Magilou and Laphicet began channeling vast quantities of mana besides Leo. The man was impressed by the obvious amount of team cohesion. All their quirks and differences aside, these people were obviously very, very skilled fighters.

Well, he'd do his best to help. He raised his rifle and sighted in his first target, a slow, lumbering sloth of a daemon. The safety clicked off.

CRACK!

All of the group members except Velvet flinched as Leo's firearm discharged. The man watched as the round flew true, striking the slow-moving sloth right in the eye and causing it to tumble lifelessly down the hill.

"Hey! That one was mine!" Leo winced as the witch standing next to him whined in complaint.

"Is that thing a cannon?!" Eizen called over his shoulder as charged forward.

Before Leo could answer, Velvet yelled, "FOCUS!" She demanded.

Her words jolted everyone from their shock, driving them back to what they had been doing. The three melee fighters rushed into the fray and clashed with the fastest of the daemon horde halfway up the hill.

BANG!

Leo shielded his eyes from the blinding flare of light as a massive mana-based explosion took out a lumbering stone-based daemon at the back of the horde, sending chunks flying and crushing nearby daemons.

"Nice one, Laphicet!" Leo complemented, cocking his rifle and searching for another target. "You're pretty damn powerful, you know that?!" He remarked.

"Thank you!" Laphicet replied as he focused, charging another spell.

"What?! No fair! Try this on for size then!" Magilou cried as she sent her own spell at a different area of the horde. Leo watched as the air around a few smaller wolf daemons suddenly became lethal as blades of air slashed gouges into the hides of the daemons, shredding them.

"…Could be better." Leo shrugged noncommittally.

Magilou pouted. "Hmph! You don't have a single artistic bone in your body, do you?"

"I guess not." Shaking his head, Leo raised his rifle, lining up the front sights with the rear underneath the path of a circling falcon daemon. He sucked in his breath.

CRACK!

He was rewarded as the falcon suddenly went limp, falling from its previous trajectory into a dive, audibly cracking its spine as it crumpled to the ground. Nodding with satisfaction, Leo cocked his rifle and let the shell clink to the ground next to him.

"Wow, Leo! That's awesome!" Laphicet ogled the man's smoking weapon.

He grinned down at the astonished malak.

"Hey, watch it you guys! Daemons headed your way!" Rokurou called over his shoulder, in the middle of a tough battle between three snake daemons. The rest of the close-range fighters were similarly occupied, cleaving their way through the monsters as the main body of the horde crashed into them like a river meeting stone.

Leo's eyes shot to the foreground where a pack of four wolf daemons were charging towards the vulnerable spellcasters. Leo pushed and pulled the lever on his rifle.

CRACK!

A wolf whimpered as it tumbled onto the floor, incapacitated by a round. The rest of the daemons increased their speed, quickly charging down the hill and towards them at an alarming rate.

Quickly abandoning his rifle over his shoulder, Leo charged forwards. The fastest daemon pounced on the man, fangs bared and ready to sink to his jugular. Leo's sword found it instead when he extended his gauntlet blade at the last second directly into the wolf's belly while ducking the lunge. The corpse of the daemon flew over his shoulder, blood spewing out of the open wound.

Hurriedly pulling his sword around, Leo slashed at the next wolf daemon to reach him. The daemon-beast whined in agony as the slash connected on its muzzle and swerved out of the way instinctively.

Hearing the pounding paws in the grass to his side, Leo fell into a roll, dodging the last wolf daemon's leap only to be pounced upon by the daemon that he had just wounded. He held his sword out horizontally in an effort to keep the wolf from tearing out his jugular as it pounced on him, its claws tearing into his coat and ripping his bandaged wounds.

Leo cried out in pain. "Hawk!" He screamed.

His world was suddenly engulfed in flames as the wolf was blown off the man by a concentrated burst of pressurized fire, dead. Rolling back to his feet, Leo turned to slash clumsily at the other wolf getting too close. The beast leapt back, cleanly avoiding the blade, only to be suddenly impaled violently by a sword of pure rock that burst out from underneath it.

And just like that, the threat had been neutralized.

Giving Laphicet a nod of thanks for the arte assist, Leo took the opportunity to reload his rifle and gauge the other fighters up the hill.

They were doing great. Rokurou was clearly enjoying himself with intense swipes of his blade, slashing and cleaving with practiced ease. Eizen was evidently an accomplished brawler himself, slamming fist after fist into his opponents and knocking them away with inhuman force. And Velvet… was absolutely terrifying with her red-hot claw devouring and devouring.

Leo shuddered as he watched her massive claw slam into a nearby daemon and pulsate, sucking the life energy out of it within moments. That had nearly happened to him…!

The poor daemon that Velvet had had in her grasp exploded in a sickening squelch of blood and gore when the claw clenched. The appendage greedily sucked all the purple liquid until not a drop was left.

The work of a monster.

Leo shook his head violently and rose his rifle. This was just who Velvet was now.

But he still knew her.

"Velvet!" He snapped loudly and commandingly, his voice echoing over the cacophony of battle.

Leo's heart sang as he saw, despite all the time that had passed, the telltale stiffening of Velvet's body at the prompt.

He continued sharply, "Crossfire right!"

Immediately, the woman leapt unquestioningly to the left, giving her hunting partner a clear shot of the quarry charging her from up the hill.

CRACK!

The round slammed violently into the ape daemon's thigh, causing it to squeal and fall flat onto the hillside. Without delay, Velvet leapt forward and sank her hidden foot-blade into its back, deftly ending the beast's life.

Leo met her eyes across the battlefield. He gave her a nostalgic smile.

Instinctively, she returned it.

"Hey exorcist! Behind you!"

Magilou's frantic call drew Leo's attention. He swore and dove out of the way, narrowly avoiding the crushing attack of an enormous ape-like daemon that had gotten past the close-range fighters. The giant daemon roared, pounding on its chest as it advanced towards the fallen figure.

Leo cursed again and rolled out of the way as it slammed two of its four arms onto the ground he had just been, cratering the earth with its immense strength. "Fuck me!" Leo yelped he rolled forward desperately, right between the legs of the daemon that wanted to end his life. All four arms of the monster slammed onto the stone pathway he had just been occupying, denting the very stones with earth-shattering strength.

Scrambling to his feet behind the daemon, Leo turned and sliced his sword deep into the ape's back, eliciting a tremendous roar of anger. Hawk took the opportunity to also fire off some artes at the daemon's head, blinding it momentarily.

Capitalizing on the distraction, Leo quickly put as much distance as humanly possible between him and the giant daemon. Or at least, he tried to, before a huge animal hand swung its way blindly behind the monster and managed to grab hold of his leg.

The daemon growled viciously as it twisted around and swung the human over its shoulder straight down onto the pavement. Leo's brain rattled in his skull as his back took the brunt of the violent impact. He gasped for breath as he was lifted helplessly into the air once more, his limbs weak and powerless.

The man was thankfully saved from another impact like that when Velvet suddenly charged in and clawed the daemon in its back, causing the daemon to drop him abruptly. Leo dropped like a sack of bricks onto the ground below, watching as the two daemons faced off before him. The ape howled in rage and moved to attack, only to cry out in pain as its legs were suddenly engulfed in a pool of dark mana.

"Now, Velvet!" Magilou cried, her hair flapping in the wind as she furiously channeled the mana into the arte immobilizing the massive daemon. The ape roared furiously as it struggled in vain against the tendrils of darkness holding him solidly in place.

"Carve them up!" Velvet declared, readying her arm behind herself in preparation to attack the immobilized daemon.

"Hell's Claw!"

She thrust her daemon arm out, charging massive amounts of fire mana through her body and exploding it all at once in her giant red-hot palm.

BOOM!

The daemon didn't stand a chance. The explosion of the therion's arte cut directly through its hide and exploded chunks of blood and gore outwards. The monster was utterly disintegrated. Its blood was quickly caught and consumed by the claw. The remains of the daemon were quickly consumed as well.

When the last of the daemon had been eaten, Velvet let out a breath and dispelled her claw, glancing around. Seeing that most of the daemons where being mopped up by her team, she took the opportunity to storm up to where her old friend had fallen, broken and abused.

"Laphicet!" She called out. The boy abandoned the arte he was casting and ran up to her obediently. "Heal him." She ordered the malak.

"Alright." The boy nodded and promptly lifted his hands and began healing the groaning man.

"Ugh… maybe… a bit different… from prickleboars…" Leo grounded out wryly through clenched teeth.

Velvet sighed, putting a hand on her hip. "…Idiot." She muttered.

Leo barked a laugh that turned into a coughing fit. Once he had recovered, he put a hand on the healing malak's arm. "Laphicet." He prompted as the light of the malak's artes faded away. "Could you give us a moment?"

"But… aren't you in pain?" Laphicet asked, eyes wide.

He shook his head wordlessly. Laphicet hesitantly looked up to Velvet. She shrugged. With reluctance, the boy left the two alone, going back to assist the others in the fight. The silence that followed was only broken by the clamor of the now-distant battle.

The damaged man looked up at the woman he had known, a determined shine in his eyes despite the agony. It was time to get answers.

"Velvet." He coughed, straining his neck to look up at the woman.

"…What did Artorius do?" He asked softly.

Velvet stared at the man, broken and battered, and yet still worrying about a worthless daemon like her. Still her old friend.

Her reasonable side yelled and screamed at her not to say anything. Because he was most likely a spy working for Artorius here to degrade her will and to make her lose her drive for revenge.

But despite it all, she found herself answering the question honestly.

"…He sacrificed Laphicet." She breathed.

Leo squeezed his eyes shut in pain that had nothing to do with his wounds. "…How… How could he?" He asked in a trembling voice.

Velvet sighed and looked away, clenching her teeth in emotion. "He used a sword of reason and will." She ground out hatefully.

Leo grunted as he forced himself to sit up on the ground, the world wobbling around him as he did so. He massaged his forehead tiredly as he straightened.

"…I saw this coming." He let out a self-deprecating laugh, meeting the eyes of the woman standing in front of him. "The moment I met him face-to-face," he explained, "the first I'd seen him after three years, I knew, I think." He sighed. "I knew… that he'd changed into someone evil."

Velvet growled venomously. "That snake…" She hissed.

There was so much concentrated hatred contained in those eyes. So much unfamiliar, foreign hatred in those familiar eyes.

Leo sighed. It all made sense. Of course, it did.

That poor kid… And his poor sister.

He looked up at the woman Velvet had become in a new light. There was only one reason why the woman he knew as Velvet Crowe would sacrifice it all, even that which was not hers to sacrifice.

Her brother.

Leo groaned as he stood up.

"What are you-?" Velvet was cut off when the man put a heavy hand on her shoulder, meeting her eyes. Her entire body tensed.

Leo said nothing. His gesture was more than enough. Velvet's breath grew ragged. She knew what it meant.

Despite all of it; everything she had done as a daemon, everybody she had killed, everything she had destroyed, the people's lives she had ruined; despite all of it, her old friend understood her.

He completely understood why she had done what she had done.

And that terrified her.


	16. C14 - Run

**Chapter 14 – Run.**

"…Coo, Coo?" Velvet's eye twitched as her ears picked up a conversation between Leo and the rest of the group as they neared Port Zekson underneath the setting sun.

Laphicet giggled. "Yep! Magilou was like, 'Act. Like. A. Dove!'" He yelled in a high-pitched mock voice as fiercely as he could manage. "And then Velvet put her hand to her lips and was like, 'Coo, coo!'" He trilled.

Eizen grinned savagely. "Aye, and the crowd bought it. We even had a couple people coming up to us after the ceremony, begging us to perform for them!"

"HAH!" Leo burst out laughing hysterically. "You're all pulling my leg, you know that?! There's no fucking way Velvet would do such a thing!"

Magilou had an evil look on her face. "Oh really? Perhaps you should ask my 'apprentice' what  _really_  happened, in that case."

Leo suddenly noticed the looming shadow of a horrifying daemon over his shoulder eyeing daggers at his back,  _daring_ him to comment. "E-er…" He stammered. "I think I'll… take your word for it…" He gulped audibly as the she-demon's eyes narrowed.

Rokurou had a hand to his chin in thought. "Say, Leo. Were you in town for the ceremony as well? Perhaps you might've seen our resident dove expert perform."

Leo tried his best to ignore the seething daemon in the background. "Yeah, I was. But I don't think I was awake at that time. I'd just gotten back from Hellawes the night before, so I was pretty tired."

Laphicet was surprised. "You were in Hellawes? Did the Abbey order you there?"

Leo shook his head. "Like I said, I trained in the Abbey to be an exorcist, but I never subscribed to the Abbey's ideals. All I wanted was the power to kill daemons, nothing more."

Eizen let out a hmph. "So that's why your malak doesn't have his will sealed away."

Hawk yipped and licked Leo's face from his spot on the man's shoulder. Leo groaned in protest and gently pushed the malak's muzzle away.

"Yeah." He met the reaper malak's eyes firmly. "I can promise you this Eizen; you won't have to worry about me spouting out some crap about reason and the greater good. While I consider myself to be a man of logic, I also deeply despise the idea of blindly following such heartless orders." He glanced over at Velvet behind his shoulder. "You guys were at Beardsley, right?" He asked. "Before you attacked Hellawes."

"The town of outcasts?" Velvet nodded. "We were there."

Leo splayed both hands out in front of him in a shrug. "Those people were so kind to me after they had learned that I wasn't with the Abbey. Those people are the people I aim to protect. Those who have been stepped on by the Abbey, and still need help against the daemons. Reason be damned, we're still all alive, are we not?"

Eizen chuckled. "I knew you and I would get along well."

Leo grinned back at him. His grin faltered as he glanced at Rokurou and Velvet. "…Although that whole protecting against daemons thing has kinda ground to a halt for the moment…"

There was a brief period of awkward silence.

Laphicet cocked his head. "So, Leo? Why'd you still follow the Abbey if you didn't like their ideals so much?"

Leo shrugged. "Well, it's just that while I was aware of the fact that the Abbey weren't as genuine as they seemed from the start, it was only until I met face-to-face with the head of the Abbey when I really came to terms with the ugly nature of the Abbey and resolved to leave." He gestured at Eizen and Rokurou. "These guys helped me out in that respect."

Velvet blinked. "You met Rokurou and Eizen before in Loegres?" She asked.

Leo nodded. "They gave me life advice in the Bloodwing Butterfly Bar one night. That was what fully convinced me to leave the Abbey for good."

Rokurou nudged him playfully. "That was also the night where you only took a single shot and called it a night." He remarked with a smirk.

Leo muttered, "That's every night I drink, for me. I can't drink any more than that."

Magilou suddenly burst out laughing. "A single shot?! That's it?! Hah! I'm sure even the kid would manage more than that!"

Leo's face reddened against his will. He muttered sourly, "You think I don't know that?"

Velvet stepped in and explained casually, "Leo here's always been a bit of a… less than manly individual." She waved a disdainful hand over the man's form.

"Hey!" Leo sputtered. "…I resent that, you know!"

Velvet ignored him. She continued, "He drinks little, he fights with as little effort as humanly possible, he constantly complains about everything, especially his infamous allergies, and he can't even wrangle pigs without being chased all over town." Her face had softened nostalgically.

Leo languished, "Ugh! Just kill me already instead of torturing me like this, you foul daemon!"

Velvet's eyes narrowed. "Perhaps I will. Where's the nearest wild sow? That would do the trick I'm sure."

Leo winced. "Anything but that! Devour me instead! Anything but pigs!"

The rest of the group blinked as the two continued to banter on, lost in their own world.

Rokurou whispered to Laphicet, "She's really different around Leo, did you notice?"

Laphicet nodded. "She… really is." He seemed troubled. "Almost like she's remembering who she used to be."

Magilou grinned darkly. "I wonder how long she'll be able to go on like this."

Laphicet blinked. "Like what?"

"Before she pushes him away," Magilou explained with eager anticipation, "just like she's done with everything else in her life."

"…" Laphicet's breath hitched as he turned his gaze back on the two anomalies in his life. "I hope not…" He muttered. "It's been… real nice to see Velvet smile like this."

Leo sneezed violently.

"Cover your mouth, idiot!" Velvet thwacked him on the back of the head.

"Ow! What will it take to please you, woman?! Shall I simply become an empty vessel, following you emotionlessly like an abbey malak?!"

She responded darkly, "If it will stop you from spreading your germs all the time, yes."

Leo sighed morosely. "It's the allergies, Velvet. It's spring!"

Velvet groaned. "It's  _always_  the allergies with you, Leo. I'm actually amazed that you've lived this long with how much you complain about them year-round."

"I'm amazed as well." Leo sniffed.

The group walked in silence, the setting sun framing them as they traversed the ever-present paved passage of the Danann Highway.

"ACHOO!"

"Will you stop sneezing!" Velvet seethed.

"And how the hell would I do that?!" Leo exclaimed, rubbing his nose.

Velvet muttered darkly, "Would knocking you unconscious help?"

Leo winced. "Hey, hey, hold on now! Let's not do anything drastic!" He exclaimed, backing off and waving his hands in self-perseveration as the daemon took an aggressive step towards him.

Laphicet laughed, hard, at the sight of the fearsome daemon he'd grow both close to and fearful of growling threats at Leo with a distinct undercurrent of familiarity and nostalgia. It made him feel so… happy to see her happy. "You guys are really close, aren't you?" He asked both of them.

Leo sputtered in mock affront. "What?! Me?! A respectable exorcist consorting with my mortal enemy?! I'd rather die!"

Velvet callously waved her hand, "Hardly. I'm just trying to fatten him up before eating him. I need my nutrients, after all."

Laphicet chuckled. Both Leo and Velvet grinned together in response, if only for a moment.

* * *

"Say, Magilou?" Leo prompted, a few minutes of silence later.

Magilou answered loftily, "What is it, my resident chest-stealer?"

Leo sighed. "I'll have you know that in the end, it was Rokurou who 'stole' the chest from you, not me." He shook his head. "That's beside the point. What I wanted to ask was…" He trailed off as he tried to find the words to phrase his question.

Magilou guessed what he was trying to say. "How is the great Magilou so talented? How is the great Magilou so well-versed in all matters in the known universe? How the great Magilou is so powerful that dragons tremble before her?!"

Leo snapped his fingers decisively. "That's the one!"

"Eh?" Magilou nearly tripped on her feet when someone finally agreed with her.

"How'd you get your malak?" He asked pointedly, raising his eyebrow.

Magilou sighed, slumping forward. "Figures. And here I thought someone was  _actually_ interested in little 'ol me." She waved her hand in the air with resignation. "Come on out, Bienfu."

"BIEN! LEO! YOU'VE GOTTA-MMmmmmfff!"

Bienfu's scream of desperation was cut short when the witch promptly crammed a fist into the malak's mouth, casually asking Leo, "Are you talking about  _this_ guy?" She waved the arm impaling the malak casually in the air.

Leo's eye twitched. "Yeah. That's a praetor's malak, if I'm not mistaken."

Magilou's eyes narrowed. "I'm afraid that you are! Bienfu is and has always been my little malak." She turned her wrathful gaze to her servant. "Now then, behave! Or I shall cut your allowance until the next decade!" She promptly slipped her fist out of the malak's mouth.

"Bien… as you say Miss Magilou…" The malak responded despondently, almost as if there was a solitary patch of storm hovering right above his head just for his own personal hell.

Leo rubbed the back of his neck in confusion. "So… What? How'd you get him back then? Did you get him from Eleanor?"

Velvet took the opportunity to intrude on the conversation, slowing her pace to match Leo's and Magilou's. "Yes, we did." Velvet responded nonchalantly. "The crybaby exorcist turned out to be in the possession of something rather useful. Actually, Mr. Greater Malak over here is one of our keys to killing Artorius."

Leo turned deathly serious.

"Eleanor's alive. Right?" He breathed lowly.

Velvet took in Leo's demeanor with surprise. Figuring that it would be best not to antagonize him further, she responded honestly. "Yes." She shrugged. "Although she didn't seem very happy with herself when we left her in the Loegres Royal Villa."

"You left here  _where_?! You're going to need to explain this one."

Magilou piped up. "Oh, this one's quite a tale. A tale of dealings in seedy, dark underground sewers, coupled with clandestine meetings with the most ruthless of underworld groups! A contract signed, and a life that was not owned, sold! A tale of most far reaching consequences, that would determine the fate of the entire empire of Midgand! Nay! The very world itself!" She yelled dramatically, waving her arms in the air for emphasis.

"We killed the High Priest." Velvet said bluntly.

Magilou slumped to the ground. "Argh! Does not a single soul here appreciate the finer things in life?! Must we all be so barbarically blunt and to the point?!" She cried.

Leo meanwhile, ran a hand through his hair in disbelief. "Christ. So that's what Eleanor meant when she said she had something to do that night." He sighed. "Well. At least she didn't die…"

Velvet shrugged nonchalantly. "I can't say the same for the High Priest." She gave a rather taunting, vicious smile. "Does that bother you?" She goaded.

Leo scoffed. "That piece of crap? Hardly. I'd caught on to his nectar schemes ages ago. I assume, of course, that was what this was all about." He waved a hand.

Magilou's eyebrow raised in surprise, catching up to the two of them. "Oh? So, you knew about such horrific crimes, but did  _nothing_ to warn the abbey or the general populous about it? Hardly a paragon of human virtue, are you?"

Leo shook his head. "I just have a bit more of a… realistic world view, if you can call it that. Crime will always happen, no matter who is in power."  _And no matter what word you are in._ "Trying to stop crime like that is like trying to stop a river with your bare hands. It's just how the world is. It's best to bite off only what you can chew." He shrugged helplessly. "Regardless, I could hardly pit myself against that man's incredible influence."

Velvet blinked. "I see you've kept your keen sense of pessimism over the years, at least." She noted dryly.

Leo shrugged. "What can I say. I'm who I am. That's most likely never going to change."

Velvet shook her head in exasperation. The three of them began to walk in silence. Eventually, Leo drifted towards the back of the group in thought.

"Leo… Please. You've gotta help me!" The whisper was desperate and high-pitched.

"Bienfu." Leo finally greeted the malak hovering urgently next to him. "Funny meeting you here. Small world, huh?" He noted dryly.

"This isn't a time for jokes!" Bienfu whined. "You have to help me, Leo! Please! You have to get me back to Madam Eleanor!"

Leo grunted. "Sorry, Bienfu. I'm a bit busy at the moment."

Bienfu muttered sourly. "I can see that! Betraying the Abbey, no less!"

Leo's eyes narrowed. "I can hardly betray something I was never a part of. Besides, I'm technically here against my own will. The fact that it follows my will is irrelevant in that respect."

"But why?" Bienfu seemed genuinely hurt. "Why would you follow a daemon rather than kill it? Do you know what Madam Eleanor would say if she saw you?!"

Leo looked on soberly at the rest of the group walking ahead of him. "I know." He uttered. "I know it would hurt her, deeply, if she saw me consorting with the very daemon that she clearly loathes." He sighs.

"But at the same time, I've got my own agenda. That daemon is someone who's important to me too. And I want to understand her better. That's why." He sighed. "Bienfu, I never joined the Abbey because I wanted to be free. Now I'm capitalizing on that freedom. I'll steer my own ship and do what I think is right. And right now… I'm trying to find out what  _is_ right. I hope you understand." He sighed again. "And I hope  _Eleanor_ understands when the time comes…" He muttered.

Bienfu looked utterly depressed yet incredibly understanding. "Leo…" the malak muttered. "…Alright."

"Huh?" Leo blinked back at the malak.

"If I ever see Madam Eleanor again, I'll tell her what you told me!" He declared.

Leo blinked again.

"I can see just how hard this is on you." The malak patted the man sagely on the shoulder. "Don't worry! Ol' Bienfu is here to help ease the load! I understand. You don't know what side to choose right now. It takes time, I know! Take your time. And do something you won't regret!"

THWACK!

Leo suddenly slapped himself, hard.

"BIEN! What are you doing?!" The malak cried in alarm.

Leo muttered to himself. "Nope. Not a dream." He shook himself. "Jesus Christ, Bienfu. Did you really just show  _empathy_?! I didn't know you had it in you!"

Bienfu put a paw to his face. "Is it really that hard to believe? Bien… After all these years of knowing you, too!"

Leo laughed genuinely. "Thanks, Bienfu. I really, really appreciate your help."

Bienfu grinned back. "Of course! You can count on me! After all, I'm a greater malak, and Madam Eleanor's best servant! It's my duty to make sure she stays on good terms with her pupil!" His grin widened. "Of course… you'd owe me for this."

Leo's smile vanished in a heartbeat while his expression morphed into a deadpan. "What."

Bienfu grinned salaciously. "Why, of course! I'd expect full compensation for such generosity!" He began to drool. "Perhaps getting me back into the gorgeous Madam Eleanor's body, for one?" He hovered conspiratorially close to Leo.

THWACK!

"BIEEEEEeeeeeeeennnn!" The malak squealed as Leo punted the perverted, scheming little bastard back to his rightful owner.

"Ahah! Nice to see you again, Bienfu! Right in time for some new trick-testing!" Magilou's cackle echoed throughout the valley.

"BIEEEEEN! LEO! WHY?!" The malak cried, utterly betrayed.

Leo huffed. Good riddance.

* * *

Laphicet's laughter rang out over the ambient chirping of the crickets as the sky grew golden, the sun setting over the Danann Highway. Hawk playfully barked at the boy as he chased him, nipping at his heels.

"Haha! Quit it, Hawk! It's mine!" Laphicet declared as he ran away clutching an apple he'd found on the ground.

Hawk disagreed, yipping fiercely and romping after the boy.

Velvet sighed fondly as she watched the kid laugh and wrestle with the malak that had quickly caught up with him. "Boys will be boys." She found herself smiling fondly.

Leo chuckled softly next to her. "The kid's lucky Hawk likes him. If I were the one with the apple, he would've licked the absolutely stuffing out of me before wrenching it from my hands with his fangs."

Velvet scoffed. "How horrible." She remarked dryly. "Just like you to have your candy taken by a baby."

Leo's eyes widened in mock affront. "I'll have you know that Hawk is actually quite mature for his age. His cuteness could make even the most vicious of daemons tremble."

Velvet rolled her eyes. "No argument there, I'll admit it."

Leo laughed softly.

The two watched as the two malaks disengaged their wrestle and began their chase once more, keeping pace with the group as they travelled.

"Laphicet!" Velvet called sternly. "Be careful! You don't want to fall and scrape your knee!"

Laphicet called over his shoulder, "I will, Velvet! Don't worry!" He yelped as he dodged a pouncing Hawk. "No way! It's mine!" he held the apple up high out of reach.

Hawk growled playfully in response.

Leo's smile faded as his mind turned to darker things. He commented quietly, "You were just as strict with Laphi, back then."

Velvet looked away. "…Yeah. Back before…" Her eyes closed. "…Before Artorius killed him." She breathed hatefully.

Leo looked at his old friend seriously. "Velvet." He intoned. "How did it all happen? I need to know."

Velvet sighed. "I suppose you deserve as much. You were so close to the boy after all…" She smiled sadly.

Her eyes hardened. "…That Scarlet Night, a few nights after you left..." her eyes turned up to the sky, her mind in a different time. "I woke up to find the house empty." Almost unconsciously, her right hand slipped behind her and into a pocket in her coat.

A flash of amber caught Leo's eye.

She continued softly, "When I went outside, the world had turned into hell."

Leo was silent, listening attentively. In the distance, the walls of Port Zekson could be seen over the hills.

"Daemonblight had spread." Velvet said simply.

"You don't mean…?" Leo gaped.

Velvet nodded soberly. "Half the villagers had turned into daemons overnight. The other half had died at their hands." Her fists tightened in emotion. "Brother turned on sister. Husband turned on wife. There was blood and bodies… everywhere." Even after all this time… the horrors of that night still plagued her dreams. That night, when everything had changed.

She continued on relentlessly. "I ran through it all. All I could think of was finding Laphi and…  _Arthur_." She twitched as she uttered the foul affectionate name she'd used to call her brother's murderer. "I found them at the Shrine of Tranquility. Both of them." She clenched her bandaged fist. "And there I watched it all.  _Artorius_ bound me in place with an arte. I watched helplessly as he told himself that I was just one more sentiment to cast off." Her teeth ground together in a fierce snarl. "I watched when he declared my brother's life a sacrifice to save the world."

Leo listened, speechless, watching as Velvet physically shook with emotion and hatred. "I watched when that  _bastard_  took his sword and…" She didn't continue. She didn't need to.

Leo put simple hand on her trembling shoulder.

Velvet finished fiercely with a whisper. "That  _bastard_ killed my Laphi!"

So that was it. Leo knew the whole story. So that was the story behind the Advent, and the origin of the Shepherd. He now knew the complete picture. And it was horrifying.

Velvet got a hold of herself. She untensed and finished the rest of the story. "It was there that I turned into a daemon. A therion, he called me. A daemon that feeds on daemons." She raised her bandaged left hand and examined it. "It was there that I killed all the daemons who got in between me and the man who killed my brother." She sighed, drained of emotion. "…And it was there that I killed all the villagers I knew and loved."

Leo connected the dots. "…So that's why you said you were the one who destroyed Aball when I ran into you back at the village." His eyes narrowed. "You don't deserve the blame for that…!"

Velvet shook her head. "But I do. I accept the blame for that, and the blame for everything I did after that." She ignored Leo's speechless expression and continued, "After that, I was imprisoned. For whatever reason, Artorius decided not to kill me."

Leo shook his head in disbelief. "So… you were in Titania for three years…"

Velvet nodded. "And you know the rest of the story." She put simply.

Leo did. She'd become a wrathful daemon; a killer and a bloodthirsty destroyer. Titania, Hellawes, Vortigern; all were just obstacles to be cast aside on her path towards vengeance. An animal of reasonless emotion. She'd killed and ruined the lives of others, all for her Laphi.

Leo didn't know how to feel about it all.

Her expression darkened. "Now you know the whole story. Now that you've satisfied your curiosity…"

She suddenly violently shook Leo's hand off her shoulder.

"…You need to leave." She whispered, avoiding his eyes and instead staring intently at the object held in her right hand.

A simple amber comb.

Leo blinked in astonishment. "…What?" He breathed incredulously.

Before any more words could be exchanged, Velvet suddenly cursed and rammed into Leo with her shoulder, pushing both of them out of the path of a powerful malak arte that vaporized any material in the air they had just been occupying.

"Damn! Praetor!" Eizen yelled out in alarm.

Magilou groaned, pulling out her guardians. "What?! Can't we walk for a day without running into an exorcist every hour?!"

Rokurou yelled back, running towards the group. "Heh, after we killed the High Priest? Unlikely!"

Laphicet called out, "Watch out! He's strong!"

Leo grunted in surprise as he picked himself up and reached for his rifle. He gasped in surprise as he took in the appearance of the praetor standing across from the group on the highway. It was a praetor he knew. A good friend of Oscar's. One he had trained with on occasion with Eleanor. One he knew had a family waiting for him back in Loegres. His grip on his rifle wavered with uncertainty.

"Leo?!" The praetor called in surprise. "What are you doing with that daemon?! Are you betraying us?!"

"I…" Leo stammered. This was what he had feared would happen. He knew this man. He was one of the better praetors. One nearly as dedicated to doing what was right as Eleanor was.

The praetor returned to combat stance. "You were with us for so long! How could you?!" The bright light of an exorcist arte appeared. "My orders are clear. Anybody consorting with the red-clawed daemon  _must_ be purged for the good of the empire. I'm sorry, Leo."

Leo shook his head vaguely. He wasn't ready for this. He couldn't fight him.

"Die!" The praetor yelled as he finished incanting his arte. Bright mirrors constructed of mana formed all around Leo while a wild humming began to swirl around him. Leo knew full well the danger but couldn't find it in himself to do anything about it.

"Idiot!" Velvet cried as she used her red claw to send Leo flying painfully away with a slash, taking the brunt of the arte instead.

Her scream of pain jolted Leo back into action as he landed. He got to his feet shakily and raised his sights, aiming directly at the praetor now fighting off Eizen and Rokurou with his malaks.

The safety clicked off. His finger slid into the trigger guard. He exhaled. There was no wind. There was no risk of friendly fire. It was a clear shot.

But he couldn't.

He let out a frustrated yell and dropped his rifle. It wasn't happening. He'd eaten with this man together in the mess hall. He'd laughed with him. He'd met his  _kids_. This man was kind and dedicated. There was no way he'd want him dead.

"Leo?" The man turned to the side to see Laphicet watching him with clear worry in his eyes.

Leo shook his head wordlessly.

And suddenly, the fight ended.

"GAAAAH!" The praetor cried as a massive blood-red claw clawed him deeply across the chest, sending him flying into a tree next to Leo with crushing force.

Leo stopped breathing.

CRUNCH!

Velvet the therion crushed the man's head like a watermelon. Without hesitation. Without blinking. Blood splattered onto Leo's face. Warm blood.

She met his eyes directly, her claw still clutching his former comrade's body. "You need to leave." Velvet said, simply. Matter-of-factly. "You shouldn't be near a monster like me." As she spoke, her claw came to life at her will, devouring the corpse.

Leo watched with horror as the man he had known vanished in a squelch of gore, murdered in cold blood by the daemon his friend had become. He wiped the blood of his face with a trembling hand.

The message was clear.

This is who I am now.

Velvet watched Leo the entire time she ate, her eyes hard and cold.

"Go." She ordered.

Leo knew he was at a crossroads. This entire time he had been living in a memory, ignoring the fact that his old friend had changed. But she had. This was her wake up call for him. The laughs he had had, the joy he had felt; it was all a dream. It was time to wake up. He had two options.

Which side was he on?

There, standing in a pool of someone else's blood, was a monster he knew. A monster who was a treasured friend. A monster who killed and devoured. Did he follow her? Or did he fight her?

Leo met Velvet's cold eyes. And suddenly, he realized what she was doing. She knew him, through and through. She knew his cowardice, and she was offering him a third option. The one he always took, in the end.

He could forget these names. Velvet. Artorius. Laphicet. All of them. Just go somewhere far, far away.

He closed his eyes. And why shouldn't he? In the end, none of this mattered to him. These people would just be faces to be forgotten, and this world a distant memory. He wasn't a part of this world. He didn't deserve to be in their stories. It was good to just leave it all be. Let the river run. Go with the flow.

Run away.

He opened his eyes and nodded silently.

He glanced at the rest of the group. He saw Hawk and Laphicet. He saw the group of weird misfits going against the world, heedless of what they had to do to go against it. He didn't belong here at all. It was good the he was leaving. Getting close to any of these people would only lead to him feeling more pain.

"I… guess I should get going then." He muttered simply, getting shakily to his feet and shouldering his rifle slowly behind him. "Hawk. Come on." He murmured. "Let's go."

Hawk whined in protest. His master shouldn't be doing this! He obviously cared for this girl, monster or not!

Leo's face hardened. "Let's GO, Hawk." The order rang shockingly in the silence.

Hawk winced. Reluctantly, the malak gave one final lick to Laphicet's finger and disappeared in a flash of green.

The rest of the group watched in silence as the man walked off.

"Goodbye." He breathed.

With that, Leonex Davidson ran away from what he cared about. Again.

Just another day.

* * *

After the man had disappeared down the road, Rokurou broke the awkward silence. "Ouch. Velvet. That was particularly gruesome, even for you." He commented wryly.

Magilou nodded sagely. "I told you, didn't I? It was only a matter of time before she pushed anything that threatened her revenge away from her."

Eizen observed neutrally, "I see no harm in it. The man's clearly not going to go to the Abbey, given his obvious hate for the organization. Might as well let him go. He'd told us everything he knew about Artorius already, anyways."

Laphicet was particularly troubled. "Velvet? Are you okay?" He asked as he shuffled hesitantly towards the daemon still standing there, clenching her daemon fist.

Velvet shook her head harshly. "I'm fine. Let's hurry on to Port Zekson and check on the scouts. We've wasted enough time as it is." She dispelled her arm and tucked away her sword, turning on a dime towards her revenge seemingly unconcerned about how she had just driven the only thing left of her old life away from her.

Laphicet looked on sadly. "Velvet…" He mumbled, watching the daemon's retreating form.

Eizen shook his head, patting the boy silently. "This is just how she is. This is how she wants to steer her ship." With one last pat, the man walked on, following the daemon headed in the same direction as him.

Rokurou sighed. "I guess he's right. Come on, Laphicet." He guided the boy forward with a knowing arm. "It was nice knowing Leo and Hawk, I guess."

As the rest of the group moved on from the scene of the crime, Magilou looked on quietly. She let out a sigh. "…And here I was hoping things might get a little more interesting with him around." She remarked dryly. "That the guy might've brought something more interesting out of our neighborhood daemon's repressed personality." She shook her head. "Turns out that they're both cowards." She shrugged uncaringly. "…Well. Not like I care either way."

Humming a soft tune, the witch set off after the rest of her Menagerie, uncaring about the future.

In the distance, the sun set over the Danann Highway with heavy-handed finality.


	17. C15 - Magilou's Menagerie

**Chapter 15 – Magilou's Menagerie.**

Leo was completely, utterly, hopelessly lost.

"Where… the absolute fuck… is this?" Leo grumbled to himself, glancing around him in all directions searching in vain for any sort of landmark or land formation to pinpoint him on his uselessly large world map. Bridges, tall cliffs, howling winds, and more bridges. This was  _not_ Southgand. That was for sure.

"What even is this." He huffed in exasperation. "What continent is this?! Am I still in the same world?! Did my device activate on accident?!" Leo sighed. "You'd think that going through different universes would give me a better sense of direction than this." He put a thoughtful finger over his lips. "…Well, if anything, perhaps the device is having negative effects on my brain's ability to function. It wasn't exactly tested fully before I installed it." He stopped thinking and let his face fall into a deadpan expression. "…Or maybe I'm just a moron."

Hawk chose this moment to stop leading in front of the man, instead turning around to give his master a deadpan "Yes, you are" look.

Leo waved the judgmental pup's ire off. "A full week's worth of travelling from Port Zekson could've landed me anywhere." He muttered as he looked over map as he walked. "It's not Eastgand… And not Southgand… So maybe Westgand? Or perhaps even Endgand? Gah! I really should've asked for directions. Hell, I don't even know the name of the port that ship took me to!"

Hawk glared at him.

"Yes, yes. I know I should've at least asked where I was going but I just needed to get away, alright? I'm tired of all this drama and nonsense. First ship out of Port Zekson was obviously the best choice."

Hawk rolled his eyes.

Leo sighed and stopped around, observing the night sky. A quiet breeze rustled his hair. "Well…" He observed. "At least I'm away from all of that…" He sighed again. "Fuck me. Good riddance, I say. I don't belong here. Why should I involve myself with these matters?" His words weren't convincing.

Hawk let out a breath. His master could be so idiotic sometimes. He nipped Leo's heels.

"Ow! Quit it!" Leo exclaimed, hopping back from the malak. "I know you don't approve, but this is just how I am. Deal with it!"

Hawk glared up at him.

"Don't give me that. Yes, I know, I should've picked a side. I know I should've done something more for my old friend and help her on the terrible path she's decided to go down…" He abruptly paused in his rant with a downcast expression. Suddenly, all the drive to explore blew out of him at once. He sat down right there in the grass, looking distantly at the canyon. Hawk whined at the change in his master.

"It's just… not my place." He sighed. "Not my world." His eyes closed in consternation. "There's no point." He muttered. Was he trying to convince Hawk or was he trying to convince himself? He didn't know.

He sighed. "That's enough for tonight, Hawk. Come on. Let's set up a fire." Hawk whined helplessly at his master's distress.

The night dragged on, bringing with it unwanted memories.

* * *

Subconsciously, Leo knew he was dreaming.

Of course, how could he not?

He'd seen this so, so many times.

This one, haunting memory.

That day.

That one, hateful day.

He watched as his arms and feet moved of their own accord.

He watched as he pushed a bent keycard over a dusty scanner, receiving a confirming beep in response.

He watched as he opened the heavy door to his father's dusty laboratory.

He watched as he entered that forgotten room that had been owned by the man he now despised.

With all his heart.

He watched as he pulled out old diagrams and turned on ancient dust-encrusted computers.

He watched as his phone buzzed.

A text from his wife.

_Where are you?_

He watched as he ignored her.

He watched as he threw everything he knew away.

He watched as he ran away.

…To think he was still running, to this very day.

From everything.

* * *

Leo's eyes opened abruptly.

For a moment, he forgot where he was. He waited for the momentary confusion to fade until he connected the dots in his head as to his current world and location. He blinked rapidly as he became aware of something nudging his side.

His eyes flew to where Hawk was nudging him urgently. He shook his head blearily and lifted it. "Wh… What is it, Hawk?" He asked, stifling a yawn. "Please tell me it's civilization."

Hawk barked, turning away from the man and breaking into a loping run. Leo cursed and got to his feet quickly, swiftly gathering up his pack and gun and following in hot pursuit. The sound of his boots landing in the grass and his own breathing surrounded Leo as he ran.

_Must be something really important to have him running this quickly._

Suddenly, his ears picked up the sounds in the wind. Something metallic. The closer he got, the clearer the sounds became.

"Well that doesn't sound civilized…" Leo breathed as he discerned the sound of clashing swords. He quickened his speed, readying himself for anything.

Hawk stopped at a corner of the cliffside, beckoning Leo. The fighting was just around the bend. Leo obliged his wolf and charged around the corner, eyes quickly taking in the situation in its entirety.

He blinked.

He blinked a second time.

 _You've got to be_ kidding  _me._

He sighed in resignation.

And then he extended his gauntlet blade.

CLANG!

His blade caught a similar blade and a spear in a lock, deflecting the two fighters; Eleanor Hume and Velvet Crowe.

"Leo?!" Both fighters gasped. Both fighters then sharply glanced at the other in surprise at the other's response.

"What. The. HELL?!" Leo yelled, sheathing his blade and throwing his arms up in disbelief. "How the hell are you guys HERE?! And for that matter, why did I have to run into you all again?!" He shook his head in utter disbelief. "Do you guys  _know_ how  _goddamned far_ I went just to get away from all this damn drama?!"

Velvet narrowed her eyes. "How did  _you_ get here?!" The therion demanded. "And for that matter, where are we?"

"…Uh." Leo abruptly cringed, scratching his head sheepishly. "You guys don't know?"

Eleanor, still eyeing her daemon opponent warily, glanced at Leo expectantly. "Well?" She asked expectantly. "How in the  _world_  did you find us? Where is this?"

"I uh…" Leo admitted sheepishly, "…got really,  _really_  lost." He rubbed the back of his head with a cringe. "I have absolutely no clue where this is." He admitted.

Both women facepalmed simultaneously.

"Listen, okay?" Leo rallied in his defense. "I just took the first ship headed out of Port Zekson to get away from this general… mess." He gestured vaguely at the two of them. "I was running away, alright?!" He openly admitted.

"I was trying to get away from all of it. The Shepherd, the Abbey, Daemons and Exorcists. I just wanted to be free and wander without worrying about the people I know trying to  _kill_  each other!" He shouted.

His eyes narrowed as his temper rose, frustrated beyond belief at his terrible luck.

He zeroed in on the therion. "Velvet, I thought you were headed to the goddamn Empyrean's Throne to square off against Artorius. That's why you drove me off, remember? I seriously doubt you've had a change of heart, so why the hell are you on the other side of the world?!"

He turned to Eleanor who was gaping at him in shock at the familiarity he was displaying with that horrible daemon. "And Eleanor! I knew you were really passionate about killing the daemon who escaped Titania…" He glanced to the side, seeing the familiar group of malaks, daemons and humans watching the entire exchange at a distance. "…But I didn't know you  _this_ obsessed about it! What the hell were you thinking?!" He yelled, aghast. "A one-on-one duel without malakhim?!"

Eleanor's face twisted in betrayal. She stammered, "Y-you know her?! This… this  _horrible_ daemon?!" She stared uncomprehendingly at her old pupil.

Leo let out a grunt of exasperation at having to explain more. "Yes, surprise, surprise. It turns out she's an old friend of mine." He waved a hand in the air. "You might remember me telling you about her here and there. She was the reason why I wanted to talk to Artorius in person."

Eleanor's eyes widened in shock. "That's right… you mentioned a Velvet…" She gasped and whirled around to face the daemon looking distinctly disinterested in the exchange. " _You're Lord Artorius's sister-in-law?_ " She breathed.

"What of it?" Velvet replied nonchalantly.

Leo muttered darkly, "Quit the sass, woman. You're not helping."

Velvet gave him a death glare in response, but didn't do anything else, to Eleanor's growing dismay.

 _They're… close._ She realized with horror.

Leo turned to his former teacher impassionedly. "Eleanor! Why are you doing this?! Why risk your life for something so irrational? It's hardly according to the Abbey's teachings, and  _extremely_ out of character for you! What happened to that stout, rational praetor who trained me?!"

Velvet looked on at this with surprise. "She trained you?" She scoffed. "No wonder you're so weak."

Leo gave the daemon a sideways glare. Velvet rolled her eyes in response.

"Because…" Eleanor tightened her grip on her spear. She tried to explain, "I can't… I can't… I can't be so  _weak_!" She cried. "How can I save people's lives when I can't even beat  _her_?!" She pointed her spear hatefully at the monster standing uninterested in front of her. She declared, "When such a vile creature exists in this world, if I can't beat her, there's no point in living such a  _disgraceful life!_ "

Leo was utterly lost for words. He'd known the calm, naïve yet strong-willed Eleanor had had a grudge against Velvet for a while ever since she'd fought her in Hellawes. But to go this far…

She was breaking apart at the seams.

He glanced meaningfully at Velvet and shared a glance with the daemon. Leo widened his eyes pointedly, promising a very thorough conversation afterwards. Velvet let out a barely noticeable sigh and nodded almost imperceptibly in reluctance.

Ignorant of the exchange that had occurred while she was overcome with emotion, Eleanor cried out angrily, "Why?!" She glared at her old friend, betrayed. "Why are you protecting her?! This foul daemon Velvet?!"

Velvet scoffed. "I hardly need protecting. It would seem that the little crybaby exorcist has trouble finding the mere will to fight the big bad daemon she hates." She let out with a devious smirk.

"YOU-!" Eleanor screeched almost hysterically with anger.

"VELVET! Quit it!" Leo ordered sharply.

Ignoring Velvet's glare, Leo let his anger flow through the floodgates. "Now, both of you children, listen up." He breathed lowly. "I'm only going to say this once, am I clear?" He glared at the two infuriating people in front of him. "You are BOTH very important to me. And it tears me to  _pieces_  seeing all of this fall apart. To see how  _far_ both of you have fallen." He seethed.

He pointed to Velvet sharply. "YOU lost your humanity and embraced its absence. Sometimes I wonder if there is any part of you left that resembles my old friend. Your cruelty knows no bounds, and it is  _fucking_  grating on my nerves."

He ignored the responding scoff and turned to point at Eleanor. "And YOU have lost all damn reason. I knew you were passionate and strong, but this is taking it too damn far! You've let your emotions get the better of you, Eleanor! You're utterly  _obsessed_! There is no reason you should hate this woman so much!"

Eleanor winced as the words of her former student hit home. She stammered in response, "Leo… I…"

"Just- fucking hell!" Leo interrupted harshly. "Why does it always have to be this complicated?!" He breathed, turning around and stomping away, growling to himself. Hawk yipped at his heels in distress.

"Do what you want, you damned idiots." He cursed. "I need a breather.  _Try_ not kill each other while I'm gone." He exhaled sharply. "God, there was a reason I ran away from all this." He flung an uncaring hand over his shoulder. "I don't even care what you do now."

Muttering darkly to himself, Leo made a quick scan of the group in front of him and locked onto the most reasonable person there. "Eizen. Where can I go to get away from the  _idiots_?"

The reaper mutely pointed a gloved thumb behind him at an open ancient door to a collection of underground ruins that Leo hadn't noticed before. He gave the malak a grateful nod and made a beeline for the temple, walking past the rest of the group without so much as a glance, and slammed the ancient door shut.

An awkward silence filled the air after the clanging of the stone doors had faded.

"…Well? Are we doing this or not?" Velvet prompted, calmly.

Eleanor, more shaken than she could imagine at her old pupil's harsh words, latched onto the one thing she knew she had to do.

"…I gave you my word. That's all… that matters." She breathed shakily.

Velvet nodded sharply and the two took their stances.

The fight began anew in the dark.

* * *

"Are you fucking kidding me?"

Leo glared fiercely at the white turtlez who had the AUDACITY to charge him triple market prices for usual supplies. On a normal day, such an irritating event would've simply ticked him off. On a bad day, he would've demanded a lower price. But TODAY, he was so pissed off at the world today, he would've happily caught the daemonblight right then and there if it meant expelling his wrath onto this insolent little lisping turtle trying to rob him of his money.

"I-I'm sorryz, but there's really nothingz I can doz! I-I-t's just, a turtlez has got to make hiz wayz out in the worldz and-"

Leo intoned darkly, "You will sell your goods to me at normal market prices, or I will go back outside and grab my daemon-buddy and have her eat you  _shell first_.  _Slowly_." His eyes suddenly took on a dangerous glint. The poor turtlez gulped audibly. "Or perhaps…" Leo trailed off.

"…Perhaps I should have some of you first. I've never tried roasted turtle before. I've heard it's extremely tasty too. I don't have any cooking utensils around though… How inconvenient. I'd just have to cook you alive in your shell."

Leo held up a threatening finger with a Hawk-induced flame hovering above it, it's light giving his eyes a manic tint and framing his face in horrifying light. "I'll warn you though… I've always preferred my meat rather rare…" The flame abruptly flared violently, reaching perilously close to the turtlez.

"WA-WA-WAAAAAHH!" The horrified scream echoed throughout the ruins.

Hawk watched the scene with sweat dropping down his fur. Wow, his master was angry.

The poor merchant's knees gave out in fright as he backpedaled until his shell hit the wall behind him, cornering him to his dismay.

"Now… you said you wanted service with a smile then?" Leo asked darkly as he extinguished the flame and leaned in uncomfortably close to the cornered merchant. He stretched his face into a completely and utterly crazed manic smile. "Do we have a deal then?" He asked deceptively quietly.

"Mu-mu-mu-much obliged!" The poor turtlez cried tears of fright, huddling in a protective ball against the horrifying daemon in human skin.

Satisfied, Leo straightened and trotted casually over to the turtlez's dropped pack, humming a tuneless and discordant song to himself as he rummaged through it. He picked out what he wanted systematically, laying out the gald for each item accordingly. At normal store prices.

Hawk shivered. His master could be genuinely terrifying sometimes.

* * *

"So… You faced off against Artorius, got your ass handed to you, but Laphicet turned out to possess so much power that when it clashed with Innominat's, he accidentally opened a rift into the Earthpulse, through which everyone including Eleanor went into. Eleanor then promised to be Laphicet's vessel to save him from becoming a daemon, and vowed to duel with you afterwards, on the terms that if you lost, you died, but if she lost, she'd serve you until the day she dies. That about sum it up?" Leo asked sardonically while he stared into the darkness of the palm enveloping his face.

Velvet's response was casual. "I'd say so."

Leo pulled the facepalm out of his face and glared at Velvet's casual response. The two were standing in the same chamber in the ancient temple as Eleanor's sleeping form, the exorcist whom had been thoroughly thrashed by Velvet in their ridiculous duel. A very morose Bienfu kept watch over his former vessel, muttering sourly to himself about evil daemons.

Leo sighed as he took in Eleanor's beaten form. "…How in the world does this all  _happen_ to you?" He asked Velvet in pure astonishment. "Aren't you ever tired of having the strangest things in the world occurring to you  _all the time_?"

Velvet gave a shrug and looked away. "I never said I wasn't." She replied simply.

Leo shook his head in amazement. "Seriously. I don't envy your position Velvet." He made eye contact with the daemon sincerely. "…But I do understand it." He sighed.

"That's why I've decided to follow you." He uttered firmly.

Velvet was caught off guard by the statement. Mixed emotions ran through her head all in an overwhelming instant. "…Why would you want to follow a monster?" She asked quietly, raising her bandaged hand as if to remind Leo of what she actually was.

Leo nodded at the gesture. "Listen. I disagree with much of what you do." His face darkened as he thought back to the praetor she'd killed right in front of him. The praetor that had kids who would now be fatherless for life. "That's for damn sure." He sighed. "But… I can't just keep running away like this."

He slumped to the floor against the wall of the temple next to Velvet, resigned to his fate. "You and Eleanor. You're both too important to me to just ignore. And now after the duel…" He glanced sadly at his unconscious mentor, reduced to a slave for a monster she despised. "Eleanor is going to be going through some rough times adjusting to life." He shook his head. "I've decided to follow you both."

Velvet looked surprised. "She really matters that much to you?" She nodded her head towards the exorcist.

Leo nodded. "Of course. She was my mentor for over two years. She saved my life and got me back on my feet after I'd learned that Aball had been destroyed." He shook his head fondly. "She can be a real handful sometimes with how naïve she is, but she's strong nonetheless. The strongest damn exorcist in the Abbey, for sure." His eyes hardened. "Still… to think she would go so far…"

He eyed his other friend meaningfully, the one whom the other had entered servitude for. "Velvet. You'd better be nice to her." He said pointedly.

Velvet let out callously, "I won't say anything about how I'll treat her. She is mine, after all. She said it herself."

Leo's face darkened as he glared at the woman. "I don't give a damn about what she said." He declared fiercely. "I'll have a bit more than a few choice words for you if you torture her. She's a friend to me, and a good one at least." He shook his head in exasperation. "While I can't do anything about this whole ridiculously twisted situation, I can at least regulate the damage done to her psyche. That's partially why I'll be coming with you."

Velvet curled her fists. "I don't care." She replied loftily. "She's just a tool to me. Just another stepping stone on the way to getting my revenge." She looked down meaningfully at her friend. "You would do well to remember just how far I would go to achieve my goals." Her bandaged hand tightened harshly.

Leo looked on sadly.  _This is just how she is_.

"If that's the case…" He replied seriously, "then I guess my job here is to make sure you don't break the tools you use."

Velvet scoffed. "Feel free to try." She waved an uncaring hand. "I won't guarantee how it'll end for you though."

Leo gave a grim smile. "You're damned right I will. You can try and chuck me away with your handy daemon powers, but I can always stalk the lot of you, regardless. Your trail of destruction and despair is hardly discrete."

"…Fine." Velvet muttered. "Follow me for all I care." She sighed with resignation. "You already know I won't kill you. We've unfortunately established this..."

Her eyes narrowed. "However." She glared at her old hunting partner. "Don't think I missed that pun. I have  _enough_ of that trash coming from Magilou as it is. You're forbidden from uttering any more from here on out, understood?"

The moment Leo's face brightened up in delight, Velvet realized her error. He exclaimed happily, "What?! Magilou's a fellow connoisseur of word play?"

Velvet stammered unconvincingly in an attempt to do damage control. "N-no. She isn't. Forget I said anything." She breathed.

"Heheh…" Leo's laugh was genuinely pure evil.

Velvet found herself genuinely pissed off beyond reason  _already_ ; even before the inevitable cascade of puns had begun. She harshly bunched up her fist and began counting mentally with closed eyes. Well-honed survival instincts screaming, Leo scrambled to his feet.

"Gotta go! Time for bed!" He retreated hastily away from the wrathful woman.

* * *

"So, the beaten dog returns home with his tail between his legs." Magilou observed dryly as Leo trotted over to the group all eating some late-night dinner in the corner of the temple. Dried meat strips, apparently.

Leo shrugged, unaffected by the imagery. "You could put it that way. I'll be following you guys for the foreseeable future, for both Velvet and Eleanor." He sat down comfortably with the group of misfits, having already broken the ice with them a week ago.

Laphicet laughed as Hawk appeared and licked his face vigorously in greeting. "Hey Hawk! It's good to see you again too!" He offered Hawk a strip of meat which the malak hungrily snagged from him.

Leo grinned at Laphicet. "Feeling better?" He asked.

The malak nodded back in response. "I'm better, now that Eleanor's my vessel and not Teresa."

Leo gave a grunt, accepting a strip of dried meat from Rokurou. "I'm happy for you, Laphicet. Eleanor's a very good master, I'm sure. Well…" he hesitated. "According to Bienfu, she is. But I'm not so sure his standards were exactly very high to begin with..." He glanced briefly at the witch sitting across from him, who pouted at his remark.

Laphicet smiled. "It's fine. Eleanor seems like a really nice person!"

Leo shrugged. "Eh. Don't ask me. My standards aren't exactly very high to begin with."

Rokurou grinned. "Because your other close friend is a daemon who eats people for breakfast." He gestured pointedly with a half-eaten meat strip.

Leo winced. "Yeah. Exactly." He swallowed his food dejectedly.

Eizen nodded wisely. "At the very least, it seems you've chosen your path. Good." He handed Leo another strip of dried meat.

Leo took it and bit into it sourly. "Who knows where it'll lead." He muttered.

Magilou looked intrigued. "Who knows, indeed?" She abruptly leapt to her feet. "I'm going to go make sure Bienfu doesn't get too comfortable with our newest member of the menagerie." She sauntered off back into the temple depths.

Laphicet nodded, standing up as well. "I'm going to go get some fresh air before bed." He headed up the stairs towards the entrance.

Rokurou let out a stretch and yawned, "Not a bad idea. I'm gonna go hit the hay. It's been a long day for all of us."

Leo remarked wryly, "Watch out. You never know when it might hit back."

Rokurou let out a laugh. "If it does, that just means more training!"

Leo shook his head in disbelief. "Crazy daemon."

Said daemon shrugged. "Guilty as charged." He walked off, leaving just Eizen and Leo together at the corner. The silence of the forgotten edifice they were temporarily occupying surrounded the two as they ate their food contemplatively.

"…Are you worried?" Eizen asked, breaking the silence.

"About?"

"About Eleanor, and how Velvet might treat her." The man asked seriously.

 _Always the empathetic one_.

Leo responded honestly, "Yeah. Worried doesn't even begin to describe how I feel about those two." He shook his head. "…But it's like you said. It's the oceans I've decided to sail into. I suppose I'm sticking with them for now."

Eizen pointed out, "You might have to fight exorcists like the praetor Velvet killed on the Danann Highway. People you used to know. Your old comrades."

Leo shook his head. "And so might Eleanor. If she's going to be stuck with you guys, I have no excuse." His eyes were distant. "I won't be running away anymore." He locked eyes with the reaper. "I'll help both of them. I'll make sure Eleanor doesn't lose her mind, and I'll try to keep what's left of Velvet's mind intact." He shrugged. "Who knows what'll happen. All I know is that my place is here, with the people that I care about. And what they might end up doing in the future… I'll figure it out as I go." He shrugged with resignation, accepting his fate.

Eizen nodded grimly. "A fine dedication. I wish I myself had such strength." He muttered, more to himself than to Leo.

"Hm?" Leo asked curiously.

Eizen shook his head dismissively. "Just old regrets." He replied vaguely.

Leo let out a self-deprecating scoff. "Gotta hate those. I've got way too many of them in my head already."

With that, he yawned. "Well, if you excuse me, I'm going to go find a hole to snuggle in to hide from all the scary monsters." He got up, grabbing a few more meat strips for himself and Hawk. "Goodnight, Eizen. May the Empyreans have mercy upon us all."

Eizen smirked up at him. "Empyreans have nothing to do with what we do. Goodnight, Leo."

Leo hummed in response and walked off, Hawk trotting after him.

* * *

Tap-Tap.

The message sent through Leo's shoulder was clear;  _Wake up, quietly_. His eyes opened silently. He gazed upwards, recognizing the looming form of Velvet in the dim temple light. She had a grim expression on her face.

She beckoned him silently. Leo looked past her and noticed Eizen walking towards the exit of the temple. Velvet turned and followed him, silent as the grave. Leo got up quietly and followed as well. Whatever was happening, he had a pretty good idea of who was involved.

* * *

"This is a top-secret mission, Eleanor. Not even the Legates can know of this. You must bring the Malak Laphicet back to the Abbey Headquarters in Loegres. Quietly. No one must know of this."

Eleanor hesitated, then addressed the floating communication arte. "Sir? What about Leo?"

"Especially Leo. From what you have told me, he has unfortunately fallen prey to Velvet's machinations. Despite my hope that the man would see reason and provide a pivotal role in killing her, the man has evidently chosen his side with the daemons. He cannot be trusted. With this mission, and everything else. From this moment forward, Leo is no longer a friend of the Abbey; he is now an official enemy of the state."

Eleanor gasped. "But-!"

"Do  _not_  let  _anyone_ know about this mission,  _especially_ Leonex Davidson. Are we clear?"

Eleanor visibly shook with indecision. Her dedication for the Abbey clashed with her feelings for her pupil. Her fist closed. "Yes. Lord Artorius." She replied, knowing all too well what her answer would entail.

"Good. The earthpulse shall soon close. From here on, you must use your own discretion to execute your mission."

"I… will…" Eleanor breathed as the brilliant light of Melchior's communication arte faded. She hung her head in consternation, staying motionless long after the arte had dissipated. Unbeknownst to her, she was being watched by three figures on the top of the cliff above the temple.

Leo's fist tightened. Velvet looked at him pointedly crouched at his side. The message was clear in her eyes.

Eleanor was an enemy. An obstacle in Velvet's way.

She would act accordingly.

_Damnit._

What did Leo do in another life to deserve this treatment? He moaned silently as he contemplated the two friends he treasured.


	18. C16 - Orders

**Chapter 16 – Orders.**

The wind whistled through the crags and cliffs of the canyon, disturbing the many wooden suspension bridges erected in the area and sending an ominous shiver up Leo's spine. He sat in front of the temple with Hawk, watching the sun rise slowly in the distance between the distant cliffs of the canyon.

He hadn't been able to get much sleep after last night.

He glanced over fondly at his malak; the lazy wolf having long fallen asleep while his master brooded over this and that.

"What a mess I've gotten myself into, wouldn't you say, Hawk?" He murmured, looking down at his companion fondly.

"Leo."

The man started and turned around to see none other than Exorcist Praetor Eleanor Hume of the Abbey standing at a distance. His eyes narrowed as he noticed the guarded body language. He hadn't forgotten how betrayed she had looked when she had discovered that he knew the daemon she was trying to kill. There was a gap between them now, as wide as the canyon they stood in.

Sadly, this was just how things were. He'd just have to try his best to bridge it.

He beckoned her over silently, patting the spot in the grass next to him. She hesitated, then came over warily and sat down next to her former pupil, bunching up her dress as she sat down.

Her arrival disturbed Hawk who opened his eyes to the two of them. The pup narrowed his eyes when he registered the animosity between the two. He let out a yawn and loped off around the grassy area, keeping the pair in the corner of his eye.

Eleanor was silent, simply giving Leo a sharp look.  _Explain._  The look said.

Leo sighed, and began to do just that to his former master.

"…I ran into Velvet a day or two after leaving Loegres." He began. "She and the rest of her group were on their way to the Empyrean's Throne to attack the Shepherd which, as I'm sure you know, she ended up doing."

Eleanor nodded. Of course. She had been there after all.

Leo continued, "I hadn't seen her in years, and like I told you, I was pretty damn sure she was dead after Aball got raided. I'd moved on already from a death that didn't happen." He gave a sad smile. "But, when I ran into her… she was hardly the same Velvet I used to know before the Advent."

Eleanor's fists tightened. "She turned into a daemon, you mean." The venom in her voice was tangible.

Leo nodded soberly. "Yeah. She's… different. To say the least." He looked off towards the warm rising sun framed by the cliffs of the canyon.

"The things she's done… they've all been towards her insatiable revenge. The things she's  _willing_ to do, as well. She's killed and will kill more. She's destroyed towns and will happily do the same to others if she has to. She's done…  _horrible_ , selfish, utterly  _unreasonable_  acts of violence to others."

Leo sighed, his eyes still avoiding Eleanor. "Like that kid in Hellawes? The exorcist's son? I still remember his name. Jason." He shook his head.

"Jason the orphan, with nobody left in his world who loves him as a family, all because some selfish daemon thought his daddy's life was of no consequence to her petty revenge. Jason, one of the many orphaned children in a destroyed Hellawes. All because of Velvet Crowe." He muttered with disgust.

"THEN WHY?!"

Eleanor cried as he all but hit the nail on the head. "WHY?!" She pleaded,  _begged_  for an explanation. "Why not kill her and save the world from the tragedies that she has wrought, and will continue to inflict upon  _helpless, innocent victims_?!"

The howling of the distant wind filled the silence that followed her plea. In the grass behind them, their shadows were long and dark as the surrounding world slowly began to wake. The two sat there framed in the rising sun, rife with confusion and distrust.

Leo looked off into the distance morosely. "…Because," he breathed softly, "she's my friend." He explained simply.

He sighed, idly examining his own right hand in the golden light of the sunrise. "She still is. Even after all these years… and all the horrifying things she's become."

"How can you  _SAY THAT_?!" Eleanor all but shrieked at her pupil, one who apparently condoned the wholesale  _slaughter_ of innocents at the hands of his so-called 'friend.'

Perhaps she had misjudged his character. All this time. Perhaps Leonex Davidson was just a monster waiting to find the ripe opportunity to let himself loose on the world.

"I KNOW!" Leo cried, equally emotionally, rapidly getting to his feet and kicking at the ground. "I know, Eleanor!" He yelled, pacing around in the grass. "Whenever I close my eyes I see that kid's face and I just want to move the damn earth to try and make sure what happened to him doesn't happen to other kids!"

Eleanor seethed, getting up as well and glaring at the man. "So then why-?"

Leo met her eyes firmly and cut her off. "Because. She's still the Velvet I knew."

Eleanor gaped at the ridiculousness of that declaration. "…How could she possibly be like the person she was before she turned into a monster?!"

Leo shook his head, looking away. His voice turned tender. "I… spent months in Aball, the village where Velvet lived, before the Advent." He explained softly. "Before I had come to Aball… I was broken. Unhinged. Lost. Velvet and her brother Laphicet were the ones who shined light back into my heart and brought me back from the abyss."

He twined both his hands behinds his neck and looked off into the sunset nostalgically, a softness in his eyes. "…I was almost considered another member of the family after a while." He recounted. "I came to their house every day, no matter the weather, no matter what I had to do that day. I came to chat with her brother about anything and everything. He was a sick child. He could rarely even get out of his own bed sometimes, so I came to him instead, and made sure he found something new to laugh and be intrigued by every day."

The memories flew through his head all at once, warm and comforting in their hue. Moments long since passed that had lost none of its pleasantness.

Leo shook his head with a small smile. "Along the way, I made friends with his sister, Velvet Crowe. We hunted together. Velvet was always gathering the funds for a new medicine that she hoped would help her poor brother, and I was always getting money towards another voyage from Eastgand. We became intimately familiar with each other's hunting habits, and in the end, we knew each other's fighting habits so well we could take out a whole herd of prickleboar on shared instinct alone." He smiled fondly, eyes seeing something distant.

"You were… that close…" Eleanor whispered softly, her eyes wide.

Leo nodded, meeting the woman's eyes, trying his damndest to try and convey his emotions to his friend. "I saw the two kids as if they were my own, at some point." He sighed, the memories slowly fading away as the harshness of reality returned.

Bleak and harsh. Uncertainty and conflict. Cold and frozen. The times were all too different nowadays.

His voice was soft as he intoned, "…I know she's done horrible things. Believe me, I hate them too." He turned his head and met Eleanor's eyes fiercely. "But despite it all…" He shook his head. "Despite everything she's done… Velvet is still Velvet in my eyes. She's still the person I hunted with, laughed with, and cherished as a friend."

He shrugged helplessly. "I just… know this, okay?" His mind flashed back to Laphicet, and how Velvet cherished him so. "I just know. It's a sort of gut feeling that you can only get after knowing someone for so long and so well." The man looked away. "There isn't much reason behind it."

He slumped back down onto the grass, drained. "…That's why I need to help her. I need to be there for her, in her darkest of times." His fists clenched. "I  _know_  she's a horrible monster. But she's the monster that's still my friend." He sighed.

"And what are friends for, if not to guide you when you've lost your way?" He smiled self-deprecatingly. "I know. It's a horrible reason. But deep down in my heart… I know this is what I want." He sighed. "I want to help an old friend in her darkest times, just like she helped me when I was without a light."

He flopped down backwards into the grass, staring up at the brightening sky above. "And that's it." He muttered. "That's my spiel. Judge me all you like, Eleanor. That's why I'm not attempting to kill the murderer. Because she's my friend. And I'm going to try and help her."

Eleanor was speechless. There was so much wrong with his reasoning. So much. Logically speaking, his line of reasoning made absolutely no sense. What about the people who would be inevitably killed by this raging daemon? What about  _their_  friends? He would just be spreading misery by allowing that daemon to live!

But at the same time… his dedication impressed her, strangely enough. It spoke of the man's inner strength, to do what he thought was right. That was something Eleanor always knew Leo had in him.

She'd just never thought that it would come out in this way. Helping a murderous daemon destroy the world. She shook her head wordlessly. The two stared at the sunset together, silently.

"…She couldn't kill me, you know." Leo muttered quietly.

"Huh?"

Leo elaborated, "When I first ran into her off the Danann Highway, I thought along the same lines as you do now. She's a monster. She's killed. She's destroyed. She's unreasonable and needs to be put down." He scoffed self-deprecatingly. "So, I tried to fight her. To kill her. I had convinced myself that she was an inhumane monster, that wasn't the person I had become friends with all those years ago."

He grinned. "And you know what? I couldn't stand a chance. She's a damn beast, as I'm sure you're aware." He let out a laugh as Eleanor cringed automatically, her thoughts returning to the earlier poor excuse of a duel. "Anyways, eventually it ended up with me in her claw and her sucking the life out of me." He explained casually.

"What?!" Eleanor was beyond horrified. The image of her pupil being consumed by that ever-voracious claw…

Leo surprisingly smiled softly. "She couldn't, in the end." Eleanor blinked. Leo elaborated, "She couldn't kill me. Here I was, an exorcist, and in the way of her precious revenge; the  _only_ thing she apparently lived for, and she couldn't do it." He shook his head silently, eyes looking distant. He posed the question, "Now what kind of a mindless, unreasonable daemon would remember an old friend, and refuse to kill him even when she has every reason to do so?"

The question hung in the air in the silence alongside the howling wind. Eleanor had no words to answer it.

Leo shrugged morosely, filling the silence. "Killer daemon or not, she's still the Velvet I know, in the end." He explained resolutely. "If you want to hate me for choosing to follow her, you're free to do so."

The silence returned. Hawk returned from his romp, trotting over to Eleanor and whining while nudging her in an attempt to comfort the distraught exorcist. Eleanor, despite herself, gave out a soft laugh and knelt down, rubbing the wolf tenderly out of habit.

"…I'm sorry, by the way." Eleanor glanced over at Leo in surprise. He elaborated, "About my words last night. I was too harsh on you. My frustration had gotten the better of me." He admitted openly. "I've gotten the story from the rest of the group and apparently you've had a rougher time with Velvet than I could've ever thought possible."

Eleanor gave a humorless laugh. "No, Leo. You were right." She looked down, depressed. "Look at me now. Servant to the very daemon I had been trying to kill." She scoffed derisively. "…What a failure I've been." The regret was palatable in the air.

Leo glanced at Eleanor acutely, his thoughts turning to the conversation he had overheard the night before. About Eleanor's top-secret mission to betray them all.

_Well, let's see what happens_.

Leo asked casually, "With how dedicated you are, I'm surprised you didn't just flat-out commit suicide the moment you lost to her. Is there any reason  _you're_  tagging along with Velvet?"

He could see it. He saw the muscles in her back tense and her hands balling into fists, her breath hitching audibly. Eleanor was never a good liar. It was clear she was fighting herself.

He waited patiently as his former teacher gathered herself.

He could physically  _see_ the moment her well-trained Abbey loyalty won the battle. Eleanor responded in a vague excuse, "I… would never do something like that." She took a breath, gathering her wits. "I will keep my word and follow the daemon's commands. For better or for worse, I am her servant now."

Leo's dismay exploded behind his façade of neutrality.  _So… you chose the Abbey over me. I guess I should've seen it coming_. He thought sourly. "Well," he spoke out loud, more calmly than he felt. "You'll be happy to know that I'm coming with you as well and making sure your life isn't too miserable."

Eleanor looked at him in surprise. "For me?"

"Velvet won't kill me." He stated firmly. "She and I are still friends, much to her dismay. Also, despite all this  _nonsense_ , you are still my friend, idiot." He gave a light punch on Eleanor's shoulder, much to her agitation and dismay.

His expression became determined and fierce. "I'll help you both. You can count on it."

He elaborated, "I can make sure she doesn't end up abusing you in your servitude, since I know she won't kill me. On the other hand, I'll also be trying my best to help her, and keep her from falling too far into the darkness." He sighed. "You two are both my friends. While it hates me to see you in such an adversarial position, It doesn't matter to me. Whatever side you guys are on, I'll help you guys." He sighed.

"I've decided… I'm not running away anymore." He announced with resignation in his voice. "…For better, or for worse. I'm here to stay. For both you and Velvet."

Despite herself, Eleanor found herself unbelievably warmed by her pupil's dedication.

At the same time, her heart dropped as he confirmed his support for the daemon she hated.

She shook her head.

Whatever it would take to finish her mission given to her by Lord Artorius.

That's all that mattered now.

Still…

"…I thank you, Leo." Eleanor whispered softly in the morning wind.

Leo smiled genuinely. Secrets, animosity, and running away be damned. Eleanor and Velvet would always be the two people in this world that he would want to help. Always. He'd come to accept that by now. This was just what he wanted to do.

This was how he had decided to steer his ship.

"No problem, Eleanor." He replied easily. "I'm here for you."

He ignored her conflicted face. She had to find out how to steer her  _own_  ship as well as he. It was just how the world worked.

The howling of the wind picked up its pitch as the sun began to climb higher and higher into the sky.

* * *

The midday sun hung high over the heads of the travelers as they gathered together underneath a solitary tree, a stone-enclosed campfire burning brightly in shade. All around them, the expansive cliffs and rough features of the ravine stood vigil, accompanied by the whipping winds rustling the leaves above them. And they still had absolutely no clue where they were.

Two figures approached the rest of the group, their kills slung over their shoulders.

"Ugh!" Leo grunted as he dropped the body of the prickleboar onto the ground next to the slowly catching campfire, a bloody gunshot wound right below its left eye. He glanced over his shoulder at his fellow hunting partner gently resting her own quarry on the ground besides him. "I'm telling you, it was totally on purpose!" He insisted.

Velvet rolled her eyes, dragging her own prickleboar over by the fire and extending her gauntlet blade, breaking into the hide of the animal with ease. "Right." She drawled. "Because hunting with one's shoes untied is a patented hunting technique."

Down at her feet, Hawk yipped as he trotted over with Laphicet, sniffing at the dead prickleboar corpse perfunctorily.

Laphicet cocked his head. "What happened?" He asked curiously, seeing nothing particularly out of the ordinary in the two shot prickleboar corpses.

Leo huffed, crossing his arms petulantly. "It's just that Velvet here refuses to acknowledge my obvious skill and superiority when it comes to hunting."

The therion rolled her eyes. "Or lack thereof."

"You're just jealous that  _you_ can't take out two prickleboars with a single well-placed, expert shot!"

Eleanor blinked as she walked over, still uncomfortably eyeing the familiarity between Leo and Velvet as she did. She took in the two prickleboar corpses with surprise. "Leo?" She glanced at him. "You did this?" She asked in astonishment.

Leo's eye twitched. "Is that so hard to believe?"

"Yes." Velvet added concisely.

"Nobody asked you."

"Wow!" Laphicet chirped as he kneeled down next to the prickleboar that Velvet was busy working on. He glanced up at the man. "Leo, you took out  _two_ prickleboar with one shot?" He asked in awe.

"That is… quite the impressive feat." Eleanor admitted. Her eyebrow raised. "Leo. Why is this the first time that I'm hearing about your expert marksmanship?"

Preening, the man grinned cockily. "Maybe I just got better." He grinned as he trotted over to his pack resting on the ground, fiddling with his rifle.

Eleanor blinked. "That's… incredible." She breathed.

Eye twitching, Velvet promptly swept out her ironclad boot agilely and slammed it onto the grass next to the man's boot.

"AGH!"

CRASH!

CRACK!

Everyone cringed as Leo's rifle discharged the moment his body hit the ground, having been properly tripped by the therion's boot. The bullet flew out off into the distance, landing with a resounding blast on one of the walls of the ravine and sending shards of rock hurtling off into the river below.

Satisfied, Velvet casually returned to her work. "Marksmanship my ass." She huffed lightly.

Laphicet and Eleanor exchanged glances as Leo groaned from his spot on the grass.

"I see…" Eleanor summarized. "So, Leo was just clumsy and tripped on his shoelaces, somehow managing to kill two prickleboar with one accidental shot."

"Haha…" Laphicet laughed nervously. "I guess that seems more plausible."

"It really does."

Hawk yipped goadingly, licking at his fallen master.

"Q-quit it, you mutt…" Leo groaned. "Haven't I suffered enough?"

Eleanor laughed lightly at her former pupil. Her small smile faded as she noticed Velvet the daemon also smirking lightly at the man's melodrama as she worked.

Their eyes abruptly met.

Quickly, Eleanor averted her gaze, looking away instinctively. Velvet herself let out a quiet, derisive scoff before going back to her own work.

By the exorcist's side, Laphicet fidgeted nervously as he watched the two women and the unspoken tension in the air.

The crackling of the campfire continued to burn in the silence.

* * *

Caves, caves, and more caves.

Leo was going insane. Well, he was driving the rest of the group insane, at least.

"HAWK! LOOK! MORE ORE!"

The rest of the group facepalmed in a rare show of unity as the resident weapons expert ran ahead with his eager wolf to gaze with astonishment at… rocks. Even Laphicet had his limits when it came to interest in rocks, and Leo's obsession had definitely surpassed it sometime in the last four hours.

"This is fantastic! Think of the augmented variety of rounds that I can craft from these! With the right combination, I could make incendiary ammunition that could burn daemons right on the spot!" Hawk yipped alongside his master's contagious excitement, tail wagging wildly. Leo's eyes glinted. "Hell, I could even develop piercing rounds that would be especially helpful for those annoying rock golem daemons we keep running into in these mines! Guys-!" He turned around excitedly to share his discovery with the rest of the group."

Velvet suddenly stepped out in front of him with a  _very_ intimidating death stare. "If you start lecturing us on the different properties of  _another_ rock for  _another_ half hour straight, you're going to be eaten alive." To make her point, she waved her bandaged left arm threateningly above Leo.

Gulping audibly at the threat, Leo abruptly noticed that the entire group was giving him death glares similar to the one possessed by the wrathful daemon in front of him. Wincing self-consciously, he scratched his head sheepishly. "Huh. I guess I got a bit carried away?" He tried meekly.

Eleanor rubbed her temples in annoyance at her pupil. "You got carried away hours ago." She sighed in irritation. "Now you're simply aggravating the rest of us."

Magilou groaned sympathetically. " _Seriously_. I might just go bang my head on the next rock I find if I have to hear one more word about its properties."

Rokurou ran a hand through his hair. "No kidding, Leo. Put a lid on it, would you? The rest of us  _really_ don't want to know about whatever new rock you've found."

Eizen nodded sharply. "Silence is golden, after all." He shrugged. "It would be best for all of us if you didn't break it for a bit."

Laphicet cringed. "Yeah Leo… It might be time to stop talking about minerals, at least for a little while."

Leo laughed sheepishly in embarrassment in the face of the group's collective ire. "Sorry… I'll keep it to myself then."

Velvet grunted in annoyance. "See to it that you will. It's in your best interest." She muttered darkly.

The rest of the group carried on past Leo, walking deeper into the cave complex which, according to the wandering bandit they had encountered earlier, should eventually lead to Port Cadnix, on Islegand, the continent they were evidently on.

Leo sighed melodramatically, then glanced down at an eager Hawk, still wagging his tail in excitement. He smiled. At least he had one loyal set of ears!

"Hey Hawk!" Leo whispered excitedly to his malak. "Did you know that this type of ore is categorized as one of the rarest ever to be found across Midgand? The composition is amazingly 23.731%- AHHH!"

Leo screamed as he dodged a very mean-looking red claw violently tearing through the air he'd just been occupying. "Got it! Stopping now!" He cried in panic while running away for his life, leaving a very irritating-looking Velvet standing there.

Hawk yipped at Velvet in a berating manner.

"Quiet mutt." Velvet growled, dispelling her claw, justice having been served. "At least you're lucky enough to not be able to understand his nonsense."

She stalked off after the group without a backwards glance. Hawk, unnoticed, stuck out a tongue at the retreating daemon, and without further ado, ran off to go find his cowardly master.

* * *

CLANG!

CLANG!

CLANG!

Leo sighed as the clanging of metal rang through the deep cavern once more for the umpteenth time, shuffling around uncomfortably and attempting to use his arms as a pillow in a vain quest for some sleep. Despite his grumpiness at not being able to make up the sleep he'd been deprived of last night, his mouth curved into a smile as the sounds of Laphicet and Hawk playing reached his ears.

They'd had quite the adventure getting up to this point. Learning they were on Islegand, heading to Port Cadnix, meeting Kurogane and the Exorcist Legate Shigure, who was apparently Rokurou's brother, and forging a new sword for Rokurou out of the blacksmith daemon's head in the interest of beating Stormhowl.  _What a bunch of lunatics._  Leo shook his head in amazement at the lengths those daemons would go to achieve their goals.

Still, for the first time in a long time… he felt relaxed. As counterintuitive as that sounded, it was true. Apparently, being with a group of horrendous daemons and being at odds with the world, in complete uncertainty of what he was doing and what is end goal was, felt good to him.

There was just something about this all… that made him feel at peace.

HISSSSSSSSS!

Leo groaned. Well, maybe not so much right now.

"Didn't sleep well last night?" Leo opened his eyes to see Velvet standing over him.

Leo shook his head morosely. "Alas, the stars were not in alignment. I'm sure you're aware, the phenomenon of Leonex Davidson getting a proper night's rest is an amazing celestial occurrence that only occurs once every few millennia."

Velvet rolled her eyes at the man's melodrama, propping herself on the cavern wall next to him. "If you need help sleeping, we can buy some sleeping medicine when we arrive at Port Cadnix. You need to keep up your strength if you're following us daemons and malakhim."

Leo nodded gratefully. "Thanks, Velvet. Always the mother hen, huh?"

Velvet shrugged. "I suppose."

CLANG!

CLANG!

CLANG!

Leo gestured in the direction of Kurogane's forge. "You daemons are crazy, you know that?"

Velvet scoffed good-naturedly. "Believe me, I'm aware."

The two stayed there in comfortable silence together, simply counting the strikes of metal against metal and listening to the ambient laughter and growling of the two younger malaks playing together on the other side of the cavern.

Velvet prompted, "So, what did our resident virtuous praetor exorcist have to say for herself?"

Leo looked over at the woman in question, currently staring contemplatively with a soft smile at Laphicet and Hawk as they played together. Leo answered softly, "Eleanor… she didn't tell me the truth." His face told of resignation. "While I'm disappointed… I honestly can't say I'm surprised. She's been part of the Abbey for ages, and has always naively assumed the best of their intentions. It's hard to let that go in a single night… even if it is for a friend."

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "So. You still want to protect her from me, even though she lied to you?"

Leo gave her an annoyed look. "Of course I do. The hell kind of friend would I be if I didn't? I told you, I'm here for both of you."

Velvet crossed her arms. "For me as well, huh? And just what exactly do you think you can do for a daemon like me?"

Leo shrugged. "I have no idea." He explained honestly. "But… sometimes being there for a friend is the best thing you can do for them." He looked up sincerely at the woman. "I'm here for you, Velvet. Just saying."

"…" Velvet was silent for a bit. She admitted quietly, "…I suppose I appreciate the thought, even if it's wasted on me."

Leo grinned back up at her. "What the hell kind of friend would I be if I didn't waste thoughts on you?" He leaned back against his arms propped up against the cold cavern wall. The silence returned as the clanging continued to fill the cavern with irregular timing.

His thoughts shifted inevitably back to Eleanor. He observed soberly, "Eleanor's going to need to choose a side in the end. Us, or the Abbey."

"Us? You consider you a part of our little group of misfits?" Velvet looked mildly surprised.

Leo gave a humorless smile. "Yeah. Us. I suppose I'm going to have to commit now. I'm officially an outlaw of the Abbey, so I guess I'm really stuck with you lot." He moaned sarcastically, "Woe is me, to have nothing but social deviants for company!"

Velvet gave him an annoyed expression. "Careful what you say. We are murderous pirates after all."

Leo scoffed, mocking, "Aye, that be true."

Shaking her head, Velvet pointed out seriously, "Leo, I hope you realize that the longer you stay with us, the more likely it is that you'll end up dead." She gazed unseeingly forward. "The path I'm on is one that can only lead to destruction."

Leo retorted. "And does that stop you?"

"No, but in case you didn't notice," she held up her bandaged hand. "I'm not exactly a rational human anymore."

Leo admitted, "I lost my rationality somewhere around the Danann Highway, to be honest." He let out a genuine smile. "And to be honest, I think my life's been much better for it. It's nice to just do what you feel is right."

Velvet shook her head in disbelief. "You're free to do what you want, Leo. Just keep the consequences in mind. Don't say I didn't warn you away."

Leo grinned. "Of course. I'm the elder here, you know. 28 years old." He puffed out his chest. "I'll have you know that I'm perfectly capable of making adult decisions,  _mom_."

Velvet put a hand on her face. "Don't call me that ever again." She ordered firmly.

Leo noted wryly, "Well, with the amount of pampering you give me, one would think you see me as a sort of man-child."

Velvet's eye twitched as she abruptly pushed herself back into a standing position. "You're not getting any sleeping medicine when we get to Port Cadnix." She muttered as she stalked off to go check on the other members of her followers.

Leo pouted petulantly.

* * *

"Eleanor Hume, you traitor!"

The vicious scream rang throughout the cavern, complementing the sharp echoes of steel meeting steel as the group of daemons, malakhim, and humans clashed with the group of exorcist praetors sent from Port Cadnix.

"I…" Eleanor stammered, her normally steady spear shaking with trepidation as she barely managed to defend herself against the wrathful praetor cursing her name.

"How could you?!" The praetor roared as she shoved Eleanor's spear harshly. "After all this time, you've chosen to side with daemons?! You deserve to pay for your crimes with your life! Be purged!" The praetor roared as she swung her sword fiercely at the turncloak.

Leo kept the exchange going on between the two praetors in the corner of his eye while still making sure he had a head on his shoulders. He slipped to the side and leapt back, dodging the swords of two exorcist orderlies attacking him.

"Leonex Davidson! We trusted you as well! You and Eleanor!" The orderlies shouted at him, rushing him. "How could you betray us so?!"

Leo grunted as his sword locked with the one of the two orderlies. He grit through his teeth, "Sorry guys. But to be fair, I was never officially enlisted!" He shouted as he pushed the man off him with a kick, sending him staggering into the other exorcist.

CRACK! CRACK!

Both opponents were caught completely off-guard as the shots connected with both of their chests at close range. They tumbled to the ground in a heap, groaning and clutching the impact areas.

Leo quickly cocked his rifle again, ejecting another spent cartridge, and slung it over his shoulder just in time to block an incoming sword with his gauntlet blade which he extended at the last possible second. Cursing, Leo heaved with a massive effort, managing to push the strong praetor's sword away. He noticed Eleanor gaping in horror at him and the two exorcists on the ground.

"They're synthetic bullets; they aren't lethal! Focus!" Leo urged the woman while dodging a few swings of the praetor's blades and retaliating with stabbing maneuvers, each directed at non-vitals.

Leo was worried sick for Eleanor. This battle was everything she didn't want to happen. The disgrace, the secrecy. He cursed Artorius. What an absolutely horrible thing to make her go through!

With a fierce roar, Leo swiped his sword harshly, driving the praetor backwards. He called out, "Hawk!"

Leo's malak appeared in a burst of green. With a vicious snarl, the malak promptly conjured up a brief but burning-hot flame in front of Leo's opponent, singing his eyebrows and causing him to cry out.

Leo capitalized on the distraction, whipping the butt of his rifle off his shoulder and into his opponent's stomach with a smooth pivot, knocking him off his feet and out of the conscious world.

Panting, Leo whipped his head around and took in the situation around him. Laphicet was busy giving two exorcists a sound beating. Eizen… well he didn't have to worry about killing anyone with his fists normally, so he was just doing as he pleased with his hapless targets. Magilou was dancing ridiculously around and whacking exorcists with her strange growing guardians. And Velvet…

She was just standing there with a hand on her hip, having knocked all three of her opponent praetors into unconsciousness, eying Eleanor like a hawk tracked a field mouse.

_She's testing her_. Leo realized with dismay.

"I'm not done yet!" The same praetor who just didn't know when to quit cried out. She let out a fierce battle cry and charged the traitor. Eleanor, for her part, dodged the sloppy move easily. She raised her spear above her head, poised to stab the lady's spine.

Her spear wavered. Leo knew. She couldn't do it.

There was never a world in which Eleanor Hume could kill a fellow exorcist, even if it was secretly authorized by the Shepherd himself. This was the stark contrast to her daemon master. Velvet would kill anyone in the way of her goals in a heartbeat. Eleanor could never. This was what he was here for.

In a flash, Leo had his rifle up and ready, lowering the front sights to kiss the rear sights.

CRACK!

The report echoed deafeningly through the cavern, amplified by the cavern walls.

The wrathful exorcist caught the less-lethal bullet in the shoulder just as she was turning around to have another go at Eleanor. She spun with the impact to the ground, dropping her sword in agony with a cry. She lay there, groaning wordlessly in pain and hatred.

Eleanor's eyes went wide. She stood there as if frozen in time, her spear still wavering in preparation of a killing blow that would never fall.

Leo let out a tense breath and cocked his gun, reloading the bullet with fresh rubber bullets, just in case. It appeared that everyone else was finishing up their own duels. His eyes landed on Velvet. Eizen had come to stand next to her. He knew why. Only Eizen, Velvet and himself had been there and knew of Eleanor's orders from Artorius. Only the three of them knew the true depth of the inner turmoil engulfing Eleanor.

"We're done here." Velvet declared coldly. Eleanor shook herself and lowered her spear, turning to look at her with trepidation. The daemon's cold eyes landed on the fallen exorcists. In that moment, Leo knew what she was going to do.

When the claw came out, Leo didn't hesitate.

CRACK!

Velvet instinctively blocked the rubber round with her newly-extended daemon claw, the round burrowing ineffectually into the molten skin and pinging harmlessly onto the ground as a broken stub of synthetic material. It doesn't matter. He was just trying to make a point.

When she glared at him, there was no doubt about how utterly furious, how  _HURT_ she was. Leo didn't care. He needed to give her a piece of her mind.

"Velvet, if you want to do that, you're going through me." He declared grimly and firmly, pushing and pulling the lever of his rifle. The clinking of the ejected shell echoed deafeningly loudly in the silence that followed his statement.

The amount of pure anger in those amber eyes at his betrayal are unbelievable. Her whole body seemed to shake with fury.

Leo didn't blink.

The look of upmost gratitude that Eleanor gave her old pupil was desperately thankful. He acknowledged it briefly with a glance in her direction before returning his eyes to the wrathful daemon he'd just attacked.

He explained firmly, "I don't care that Eleanor is your 'slave,' or your 'tool for revenge.' You are  _not_ going to torture my friend like this. I won't allow it." Leo walked up to Velvet calmly, staring challengingly into her eyes.

Velvet's fists curled violently.

Eizen put a hand on the therion's shoulder meaningfully. The two exchanged a glance. With an aggravated breath, Velvet dispelled her claw with a swift flick of her arm. Satisfied, Eizen let go before Velvet shook his hand off.

The daemon stalked forward, right towards the one who had attacked her. She stopped in front of him, glaring with hard, cold, and utterly unfamiliar eyes. She growled in a low, cold voice, "You do that again." Her eyes narrowed. "I dare you." Leo felt a shiver run up his spine instinctively.

With that, Velvet walked straight past him without another word.

On her way towards the exit of the cavern, she stopped shoulder to shoulder by Eleanor. Without sparing her tool a glance, she stated to the air, "Your orders from here on out is to defeat the exorcists, but make sure they don't die. Understood?"

Eleanor gave a rough nod, despite Velvet not being able to see it. She whispered shakily, "Yes."

Orders having been given, Velvet walked off away from the group without another word.

Leo stared at retreating form of his friend sadly. He'd hurt her, and deeply. He supposed Velvet had never really comprehended the full scope of how important Eleanor was to him until just now. He knew that. But there were some lines in the sand that just had to be drawn. She would just have to accept that he cared about Eleanor just as much as he cared about her. And that would mean friction.

That was just how rough the oceans he'd decided to sail were.

Leo sighed sadly and turned around only to nearly run smack into Rokurou and Kurogane, returning from the forge with fresh blades. Rokurou greeted, "Whoa. Easy there, firecracker." He blinked as he took in the receding form of Velvet, a very distraught looking Eleanor, and Leo standing there with a sad look on his face. "What the hell happened?" He asked.

Leo put it simply.

"Discord." He muttered.


	19. C17 - Medicine

**Chapter 17 – Medicine.**

The occasional groaning of the ship. The flapping of the canvas with the wind. The low murmur of a crew member talking to another. The ever-constant lapping of waves against the ship's prow.

Leo sighed, taking in the sounds of the Van Eltia as it sailed through the western seas towards the Yesult Archipelago, leaning on the railing of the quarter deck and watching the darkened seas alone. Normally, on a night like this, with the bright waning moon shining merrily onto the shadowed deck of the pirate ship, Leo would've naturally entered a state of calm and tranquility. This was what he lived for, after all. Traveling and being alone.

Well, 'normal' hadn't applied to him for a long time.

A bright flash of green light and a short hum announced Hawk's appearance as he materialized from within Leo onto the railing of the ship, crouching next to his master. The pup silently nudged Leo out of his brooding with his muzzle.

Leo gave the wolf a brief smile and muttered, "Yeah, buddy. What a mess I've gotten myself into."

Hawk began licking Leo's hands with empathy in his eyes. He gave a sad smile. "I've royally pissed off Velvet, and Eleanor is still keeping secrets from me for the Abbey. The two people I'm here for are both so damn against each other that I have no clue how to help. I'm not sure what exactly I'm trying to do here, but I'm wading into the deep end nonetheless. These past few days have not been good on my sanity, I'll tell you that much, Hawk."

His wolf, thoroughly well-versed in when to let his master vent, crouched there and listened patiently. That was all the man needed; an outlet for his thoughts.

Leo took off his glasses and rubbed the bridge of his nose in agitation. "Honestly. I know I want to help these two… that's why I'm here. But what about Velvet's end goal? Do I support her killing Artorius? He's the  _head_  of the Abbey. An organization that I hate, granted, but nonetheless undeniably has saved many lives in their application of reason. Killing Artorius would mean dismantling the Abbey from the ground up, and most likely meant the death of hundreds if not thousands." He sighed. "I'm not sure about any of this; what's right or what's wrong. Yet I'm still blindly following the people I care about in what they're doing. I'm completely lost."

The waves continued to lap the ship unceasingly. Leo admitted quietly, "But when I ask myself the question if I regret anything I've done so far… I come up with a firm no." He grunted. "For better or for worse, I'm stuck with these people. One foot in front of the other, I suppose. Just make sure not to look up." His thoughts turned to the device in his head. Like always.

He forcibly stopped himself from checking the charging rate of the device.

It would do him good if he were to just ignore the inevitable for now. One foot in front of the other, walking blindly forward. He'd just have to hope he didn't bang his head into a wall.

Hawk whined at his master's distress. Leo gave a fond smile and stroked the pup's fur.

"Leo?"

The man in question jumped in surprise and turned around to see Laphicet standing there, holding his ever-present compass in hands and looking rather concerned.

"Hey there Laphicet." He greeted. "What's on your mind?"

Laphicet trotted up to him, asking, "Are you okay? Ever since we left port, Velvet's been super angry at you, and hasn't said a word to you." He fiddled with the compass in his hands. "You and Velvet are normally so close. I was worried that you might be feeling lonely…"

Leo smiled genuinely at the kid's kindness. He gave the kid a pat on the head. "Thanks, Laphicet." His face soured. "But I think Velvet has every right to be angry with me. I did shoot her after all."

Laphicet shook his head firmly. "But that was just to stop her from eating the exorcists in front of Eleanor, right?"

Leo nodded. "I had to do it." He fiddled with the strap of his ever-present weapon over his shoulder guiltily. "I couldn't allow her to do something so horrible to a friend, even if she is my friend too."

Laphicet looked distraught. "But… I don't think Velvet would've eaten the exorcists anyways." He shook his head. "I just… I feel that way."

Leo looked down thoughtfully. "Maybe. I think you're right. Eizen seemed to have the same idea in the heat of the moment." He shrugged slowly. "Either way, I had to do it. She has to know that I'm on Eleanor's side as much as hers."

Laphicet cocked his head. "But why does there have to be sides? We're all in this together, aren't we?"

Leo grunted. "Well. Not necessarily. As far as I can tell, everyone here has their own agendas. Rokurou wants to kill Shigure, even if it means fighting us. Eizen's looking for Aifread and will continue doing whatever it takes to that end. Magilou… well is Magilou. I myself am only here to help both Velvet and Eleanor." He grinned. "Well, now that I think about it, the only person in this ship who doesn't have ulterior motives is you."

"But what about Eleanor?" Laphicet asked curiously.

Leo cringed. "…Yeah. I suppose Eleanor as well."  _But not really. She's going to betray us, including me, for the Abbey._ He thought sourly. The man shook his head and said, "The point is, most of us have our own agendas. So naturally, when agendas collide, there's bound to be friction among the ranks." He rubbed his temples. "It's just the nature of our little menagerie."

Laphicet looked down in dismay at this statement. Suddenly, he shook his head and his head shot up with determination. He declared fiercely, "Okay. So, I'll just have to help you."

Leo blinked. "How do you plan on doing that?"

Laphicet spoke, a plan clearly forming in his head. "I'll talk to Velvet for you. I'll get her to understand that you're only looking out for Eleanor, and that you care for her just as much. I'll get her to understand what you just told me. I don't think she understands how much you care for her, too!"

Leo scratched his head. "…But why help me?"

Laphicet's determination was palatable. "Because friends should always stay together, no matter how different they are or what agendas they have." He shook his head. "It's not right to let you guys stay this way."

Leo gave an honest smile at the little kid who was named after Laphi. "You're not wrong, kid. Thanks a lot. I'm pretty sure if I tried to approach her now, she'd throw me into the ocean for the fish to eat."

Laphicet shook his head. "She wouldn't do that." He reconsidered abruptly. "Well… maybe she would. But I know she'd fish you back up right away and make sure you're safe." He smiled. "You two are really close."

Leo laughed. "She does have a very violent way of showing her affection."

Laphicet giggled. "Have you seen how she is when she orders me to go wash my hands? Or to finish all the food in my bowl?"

Leo rolled his eyes. "Have I seen it? Kid, I see it every damn day when she orders me to do those things too. I swear she's such a mother hen sometimes, even to me! And I'm almost a decade older than her!"

The child shook his head in amusement. "One time," he recounted, "When we were on the Danann Highway, and we were attacked by a bunch of daemons, I was careless and got a huge scratch on my back from a daemon's claws."

Leo winced. "Painful."

Laphicet nodded seriously. "Yeah." He shook his head. "But then, before either me or the daemon could do anything else, Velvet charged in with a really scary roar! I don't think I ever really hear her that angry unless she's talking about Artorius."

Leo nodded sagely. "Oh, I distinctly remember how terrifying she can be when someone tries to hurt you. Remember that first time I accidentally shot you when Velvet and I were fighting?"

Laphicet nodded. "Yeah! I wasn't in any real danger, but she was shaking in anger!"

Leo shook his head in disbelief. "Honestly. Women can be so overprotective sometimes."

Laphicet's head cocked to the side in confusion. "…Does that mean that men can't be overprotective?"

Leo sighed. "Well… no. Look at me, for example." He languished self-deprecatingly, "A slave to both the daemon Velvet Crowe and the exorcist praetor Eleanor Hume. The chains that bind me in place; my very own emotions." He hissed dramatically.

Laphicet blinked. "Well, for what it's worth," he paused, "I'm glad you're here helping both of them." He nodded resolutely. "Velvet could really use someone who knows her really well, and Eleanor is going through hard times being forced to fight her old comrades. Both of them could really use your help, no matter how angry they get at you!"

Leo let out a breath of amazement. "…You're really empathetic, you know that Laphicet?"

"Empathetic?" Laphicet parroted.

Leo explained, "Empathetic, as in you have a lot of empathy. Having a lot of empathy means that you are really good and imagining yourself in someone else's shoes and imagining what it would be like to feel as they feel." He grinned. "You're good at judging feelings, you know that?"

Laphicet blushed abashedly. "W-Well... I guess. thanks Leo."

Leo gave the boy another pat. "Thanks, buddy. And you're completely right. Thanks for saving me from my own stewing thoughts."

Laphicet smiled up at the man. "That's what us friends do, right? Help each other in their darkest times."

Leo narrowed his eyes at the familiar phrase. "You little rat. You were eavesdropping in on me and Eleanor that morning in the Bridgid Ravine." He accused sternly.

Laphicet stuttered in his defense, "We-well… y-yeah…"

Leo shook his head in amusement. "No wonder." He got up from his railings. "Alright. Thanks for the pep talk little guy. It's exactly what I needed." He stretched with a yawn. "I think it's time we both stopped thinking of hard things and went to bed, don't you think? Otherwise Velvet might storm out here and scold the both of us with that terrifying mother-hen vibe."

Laphicet laughed. "Yeah. And she might throw you into the ocean too!"

Leo cringed. "All the more reason. Let's split, kid."

The two walked down the stairs and into the decks below, headed to their cabins. High above them, the moon shone just a bit brighter from its perch above the Van Eltia.

* * *

"Mother… fucker… GAH!"

Leo's scream of dismay and annoyance echoed throughout the busy Van Eltia, followed abruptly by a harsh trumpeting as he blew his nose harshly and noisily for the umpteenth time. All the sailors around him working tirelessly in the heat to keep the ship going ignored him with ease.

_Fucking reaper's curse. Fucking Corsair's Scourge. What a damned nightmare._

The crew had officially been afflicted with an infamous sailor's disease and the ship had changed course. They were now a day or so out from Port Reneed in a desperate attempt to get some Sale'toma flowers for medication. Leo himself had been one of the unlucky few to start showing symptoms already, however his symptoms were only from the early stages of the disease, meaning he was still physically able enough to accompany the group and help get medication from Reneed. That was the plan.

"Are you alright?" Leo sniffed miserably as he noticed Eleanor standing behind him in concern.

He responded grouchily to her question, "No. I am not alright. What part of  _THIS_  sounds like I could  _possibly_ be  _ALRIGHT_?!" Right on cue, Leo cut off his rant to sneeze at length with a wheeze.

Feathers ruffled, Eleanor let out a hmph and looked off to the side self-righteously. "Well. Forgive me for caring."

Leo sighed. "Yes, yes, sorry. Thank you for your concern, Eleanor. It's just hard to be very appreciative when you're stuck in the bowels of hell." His expression was sour.

"You're being dramatic." Eleanor pointed out.

Leo whined as he leant forward to plant his face miserably onto the hot sunbaked wooden railing. "Woman, I  _live_  to be dramatic. Why the hell else would I be tagging along with you deviants?!"

Eleanor pouted. "One could say that helping a friend in need would be more than enough reason."

Leo tutted, "Ah-ah. You mean helping  _friends_  in my case." Leo stared out into the sea morosely. "Even if one of said friends absolutely despises my guts right now…"

Eleanor pursed her lips at the reminder of how close Leo was to Velvet. "I never got a chance to thank you for stopping her from eating those exorcists. You did that for me, didn't you?"

Leo sighed, turning around and leaning his back onto the railing. "Well, it was unnecessary anyways. She most likely wouldn't've done it anyways, if only to make sure your usability as a tool to her was maintained. I just had to make a point." He sneezed again.

Eleanor looked thoughtful. "…That does sound like her."

"No," Leo growled back, "that doesn't sound like her! Manipulating people just for her own goals... Sometimes… the things she does! Sometimes I can't wrap my head around the person she's become. Goddamnit, I barely even recognize her sometimes!"

Silence filled the air at that declaration. Eleanor didn't know what to say to that.

The silence was abruptly broken by a particularly loud and painful-sounding set of drawn-out sneezes.

"Son of a motherless goat!" Leo shouted in frustration after the last sneeze had ended, rubbing his sore throat.

"Oh, stop whining and get over yourself." Leo whipped around and glared at the newcomer, Velvet, speak of the devil, strutting over to the two of them. He absently recognized the instinctive tensing of Eleanor's figure at the daemon's presence.

Leo ran a critical eye over Velvet's demeanor towards him. His heart breathed a sigh of relief when it realized that she wasn't as livid as before. Laphicet must've made good on his promise to talk to her and try to make her understand his position. That kid could always break through to the human in Velvet.

Leo stuck his tongue out at her. "Oh, be quiet, you. You know more than anyone else in this tub how bad I am when it comes to suffering."

Velvet walked over and casually leaned her back on the railing next to Leo, rolling her eyes. "That one time you were sick in Aball, you mean?"

Leo gave a morose nod and languished, "Oh, the cruel suffering I had to endure under your wrathful watch. You were more daemon back then that you are now."

Velvet closed her eyes in annoyance. "Might I remind you that you had an extremely high fever? You were coughing every two seconds, you had thrown up out the window of your room the day before, and yet despite all that, you still wanted to go hunting for some reason!" She ground out through clenched teeth.

Leo leaned forward and away from Velvet, giving a stage whisper to Eleanor who was obviously feeling out of place. "See? Absolute daemon." He hissed loudly.

Velvet growled in annoyance.

Leo gave a nostalgic smile. "Man… I felt so sorry for Laphi back then. I couldn't do jack with you watching over me like a hawk." He abruptly scrunched his face into a ridiculous imitation of Velvet's glare and let out in a harsh and high-pitched voice, "Leo! Drink more water! Leo! You need to wear more clothes, it's cold in here! Leo! Don't you dare touch that weapon! You're not leaving this room until I say so and that's final! LEO!" Leo shook his fist in mock fury.

At this point, Eleanor couldn't take anymore and burst out laughing.

If anything, Velvet looked even more pissed off. "Tch."

Eleanor tried to get a hold of herself. "I just-the image of you mothering over a man who's 9 years older than you-Haha!" She tried in vain to get her snickers to subside.

Leo gave a great big grin. "Just wait until you hear the time when I snuck out the window when she was out getting me water from the well. Oh man she was  _so angry_ that she-!"

Velvet gave a flat stare to Leo. "You mention that incident, and you die." She declared flatly, eyes flaring dangerously.

Leo instantly clamped his jaws shut with a peep. Yet, in his peripheral vision, he noticed Eleanor's petulant face, like a child being denied a treat. He sighed.

_The things I do for my friends._

He whispered quietly and quickly to Eleanor, "She tried to spank me like I was her brother!"

Velvet's wordless scream of fury erupted the moment Leo said this. With a rushed salute to a stupefied Eleanor, Leo took off, leaping down the stairs onto the main deck and away from the wrathful daemon hot on his heels.

Eleanor's hysterical laughter rang throughout the ship, followed by the cursing and swearing of pirates unfortunate to get in the way between the predator daemon and her prey.

The exorcist eventually managed to stifle her laughter and calm down, watching as her daemon master inevitably cornered her old pupil at the prow of the ship and locked him harshly into a chokehold. Leo whined something about the abuse of the sick and frail as he struggled vainly in her iron grip.

Despite it all, it seemed that Velvet and Leo were still as close friends as ever. But Leo still cared about her; him shooting his own friend for trying to eat the exorcists was more than enough proof of that. Maybe the three of them could get along after all, in this convoluted situation they've somehow been thrust into.

And yet… there was Lord Artorius's mission. She was honor-bound to carry it out. It was inevitable that she would betray the two of them; she would betray all of them. Her fists clenched. It was necessary and reasonable to put a stop to the daemon's mad rampage. That was what needed to be done.

But then why did she feel so horrible about it?


	20. C18 - Flower

**Chapter 18 – Flower.**

"I hate the rain."

"That's the fifth time you've said that."

"Doesn't make it any less true."

Velvet exhaled, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Remind me your purpose in following us again?"

Leo put on a mock offended face. "Oh, but Velvet honey! I thought you and I are bound together by fate, blessed to be eternal star-crossed lovers."

Velvet grimaced. "The only thing that binds us together is my fist in your face."

Leo grinned. "Well…" He shrugged. "I suppose the state of seeing stars applies to the 'star-crossed' part."

"Tch." Despite her ire, Velvet smirked.

Leo returned a smile. "Anyways," he changed the subject, "how much more do we have to walk?"

Velvet turned back to the matter at hand. The two of them were walking alone in Reneed, a decently spread-out farming settlement in the frontier, headed to one of the few apothecaries in town that sold Sale'toma flowers. The group had split up in order to expedite the search before the sun went down. The sun that was presently hiding behind the gratuitously dreary clouds currently pouring rain on top of the swampy land.

Velvet looked thoughtful. "Of the five apothecaries in Reneed that the guard told us about, this one is the closest to the east gate, which is right there." She pointed towards the wall surrounding the settlement some distance away. Leo had to squint to make it out through the downpour.

He muttered, "Damn. For such a remote Westgand village, this place really does have a substantial wall."

"Of course," Velvet let out loftily, "with malakhim to do all the work for them, the Abbey can easily build such things."

Hawk, trotting alongside exorcist and daemon, chose this moment to give a scoff.

Velvet, noticing the malak out of the corner of her eye, shook her head in disbelief. "By the way, what's the story behind you and the malak pup that can understand human speech?"

Leo grinned. "Oh, this guy? He was just something I picked up along the way." He laughed at Hawk's deadpan glare. "Kidding, Hawk." He shook his head. "No, what actually happened was that this guy was about to turn into a daemon, and I made him into my malak to save him with Eleanor's help."

Velvet glanced at the pup in surprise. "Just like Laphicet." She observed absently. "So… what's his story?" She prompted. "Do you know?"

Leo shrugged uncaringly. "No clue. The little guy seems plenty happy listening to me ramble on all day about various pieces of garbage, though. That's all I know about him." He explained with a fond smile.

The malak yipped happily, nudging the man affectionately in return.

"So," Velvet pointed out, "you have no idea what the wolf's history is. Just like how none of us truly know  _your_  history." Her eyebrow raised pointedly.

Leo cringed. "Something like that."

The daemon sighed. "Leo, I swear. I will never understand why you keep so many secrets that you can't even tell us where you came from."

The man shrugged helplessly. "It's just what I do."

Velvet's eyes narrowed. "Have you told your precious 'master' your history?" She muttered spitefully.

Leo took offense at the accusation.

"Hey." He said seriously. "Just because I shot you for her sake doesn't mean I would keep secrets from her and not from you."

Velvet abruptly stopped and turned to face him. "About that." Her eyes narrowed. "Don't think I've forgiven you for what you did back in the caves."

_So, the elephant in the room has been addressed._

Leo's face hardened as he turned to face the woman directly. "I'm aware, Velvet." He stated plainly.

"You should know though, that what you were thinking of doing, even if it was for a moment, was inexcusable. You would've broken her mentally; completely and utterly, Shepherd's orders or not. That I won't condone." He shook his head. "I'll admit it. I really,  _really_ don't feel comfortable with the things you are willing to do to achieve your revenge. Killing, destroying; it's all not particularly appealing to me." He sighed. "But at the  _very_ least, you could at least make the effort to  _not_ mentally break my friend!" He pleaded.

Velvet returned with a dry stare. "I'm a daemon, in case you haven't noticed." She waved a hand. "I hardly think you have any right to tell me what I should or should not do. I'll do anything to kill Artorius. Anything, and everything. That's all I live for." She stated matter-of-factly.

Leo clenched his fist in frustration. "Velvet. Is the world black and white?" He muttered to the side, looking off into the rainy distance.

Blinking, Velvet replied, "The hell kind of question is that? It's obviously not. If you subscribe to that idiotic notion, you're better off with Eleanor."

"Then why?"

Velvet's frustration peaked. "Get to the point. Why what?"

The man turned to confront her, his eyes meeting hers challengingly. "Why do you keep hiding behind that word?!" He demanded.

He scrunched his face into a flat scowl and imitated her low voice. "I'm a daemon. Everyone's scared of me and should be. I'm heartless. I use everything I need as tools for my revenge. I kill, and I devour everything and everyone. I'm a monster."

"…Are you saying I'm not?" Velvet was almost incredulous.

"I'm saying that you are. BUT!" Leo interrupted Velvet opening her mouth, "I'm also saying that you AREN'T."

The rain filled the silence in the conversation as Velvet realized Leo's point. He made it even clearer. "You're telling me you don't believe in a black and white world, yet then you turn around and you give yourself leave to do all these horrible acts by just saying, 'Hah! Joke's on you! I'm evil, so I get to do all of this! This is who I am!' Completely ignoring the fact that a good part of you is  _still human_."

His point made, Leo's arms fell to his sides. The rain kept on pouring over the two. Both of them, thoroughly drenched, stood there alone in the fading light of day, completely isolated by the surrounding wet landscape.

"…" Velvet's fists clenched.

Slowly, the therion hissed in a low voice, "…What part of me could you possibly think is still human?"

She glanced down at her bandaged, inhuman left hand. "How have I acted in a way that could  _possibly_ make you think that?!" She whipped her head up to glare at the frustratingly naïve idiot standing in front of her.

"Answer me!" She ordered heatedly.

"Laphicet." Leo let out the simple word.

"That malak?" Velvet scoffed derisively. "He's just a tool-"

"That you gave your beloved brother's name to." Her friend interrupted unwaveringly.

A meaningful silence fell once again at the observation.

Leo continued, "You look me in the eye, o fearsome daemon, and you tell me you feel absolutely  _nothing_ for that boy other than the need for his powers to serve your revenge, and  _nothing_ more." He growled out impassionedly into the air. "That sweet, charming, innocent little boy that reminds both of us of a certain adventurous little golden-haired boy." His voice rose. "Tell me, Velvet Crowe, that you would happily crush his head for the sake of killing Artorius!"

"…" Velvet gathered herself, slowly meeting the man's eyes. "…Whatever residual feelings I have for the things I use are irrelevant."

Her dismissal wasn't entirely convincing.

Her fists curled. "All I care about is my revenge for my  _actual_  brother." She declared. "If I have to sacrifice everyone I know, I'd gladly do it to get my vengeance." Her gaze fell. "That's just the sort of monster I've become."

Leo's eyes were soft.

Ever so slowly, the man approached his old hunting partner and put a firm hand on her shoulder. He felt her tense, but she didn't shake it off. A testament to their intact friendship.

His heart sang at this.

"I know you've painted yourself in your mind as someone horrible, Velvet." He intoned softly, holding the woman's gaze. "And I won't lie and say that what you've done isn't utterly horrific."

He shook his head. "But at the same time, I know where you're coming from. Nobody else here does." He patted his chest meaningfully. "But I do. And take this from a person who knew you before you a daemon, okay?"

He gave a firm squeeze on her shoulder. "There is at least one person around you whom you've failed to convince that you deserve the label of monster, at least fully." He intoned. "I know that inside all this violence and anger, you're still you. That's why I'm still here."

He gave a pat on his friend's shoulder and let go, stepping backwards and giving her some space. His boots squelched noisily in the rain-filled silence.

He went on wryly, "I don't mind giving you a little wake-up bullet whenever you let yourself go a bit too far into the deep end, Velvet. Whenever you let yourself get too carried away in your role as evil monster, I'll be here to let you know. I'll be there to make sure you stay in in the light." He promised sincerely.

He gave an honest, wry smile. "That's what friends do, after all." He waved an uncaring hand in the air. "If you're going to hate me for it, go ahead."

Velvet looked away from the idiot trying his best in vain to help her, her eyes clouded in emotion.

"I…" She breathed softly. "I… honestly have nothing to say to you, Leo." She shook her head in disbelief. "I knew you were stupid, but I'd never fathomed that you could ever be  _such an idiot_." She growled.

The therion sighed in exasperation. "…I suppose you're free to try to do whatever you want." Her eyes shot forward and burrowed into her friend's. "But I warn you. If you ever get directly in the way of my revenge, I won't hesitate to kill you. Understood?"

Leo gave a wry smile. "Course." He pointedly stepped off to the side, off the path and onto the grass. He had long ago accepted that there was no changing Velvet's drive for vengeance. "I'm just along for the ride, here to give you a few words of wisdom here and there." He summarized.

Velvet rolled her eyes. "You're definitely going to die. You know that, right?"

"We've established this, yes." Leo agreed with a shameless grin.

Velvet rolled her eyes in wonder at her old friend and trudged onwards past him, shaking her head. "Come on." She urged abruptly. "We've wasted enough time standing in the rain and you're already sick as is."

Leo panicked. "Wait! No! Don't mention my sickness! I'm going to feel sick aga-ACHOOO!" He sneezed violently and began to shiver. "Gah! What did I just say?! I blame this all on you! Curse you, foul daemon! A pox upon you!" He ran after the nonchalantly strolling woman.

Velvet gave him an amused smile as he caught up with her. "Actually," she pointed out, "if this apothecary doesn't have any Sale'toma flowers in stock, the pox will most assuredly be upon  _you_."

Leo stopped dead in the water. "…What. The Corsair's Scourge causes pox?!" He shook his head in denial. "No, no, no, please say no! Anything put pox. Please. You know how much I hate pox!" He cried.

Velvet hummed casually and walked on, ignoring him.

"VELVET!" Leo shouted after her in horror.

The daemon looked over her shoulder back at him with a vicious, taunting smile. "Still think I'm not a monster?" She goaded.

Leo facepalmed with a wet slap to the face.

* * *

"Please tell me you guys had better luck than us." Leo pined as he, Velvet, and Hawk arrived in front of the local Reneed inn where the rest of the group had already met up. His heart sank when everyone simultaneously shook their heads. He muttered sourly, "Reaper's curse, huh?"

Eleanor gave him a curious look at that. "You too? I never saw you as a superstitious person, Leo."

On cue, the man sneezed vigorously into the rain. "I'm not." He grumbled, wiping his nose with his sleeve.

Eizen spoke up. "According to what we've gathered, even though the flowers are in season, it would appear that where they normally grow, a forest called the Warg Forest a few hours east of Reneed, a strange daemon has been out and about killing exorcists."

Rokurou gave out an enthusiastic grin. "Sounds like quite the opponent, too."

Velvet gave him a look. "The herbalist we spoke to ourselves told us that the daemon has a 1 in 100 chance being found. We're not going to be out looking for unnecessary trouble, you know." She reminded pointedly.

The daemon swordsman just grinned back at her. "We have the reaper with us." He pointed out. "You might as well just call us the unnecessary trouble magnets."

"…You're probably right." Velvet sighed with resignation.

"So," Laphicet asked, "we're going to the Warg forest to get some Sale'toma flowers?"

Leo nodded. "Of course. Anything to save 'ol Leo here from his suffering."

Velvet scoffed. "You mean save everyone else from hearing your insufferable whining." She waved a disdainful hand.

The man pouted wordlessly at that.

Eleanor eyed the two closely.  _It would seem that they've made up._ She concluded mentally.

She didn't quite know how to feel about that.

The exorcist cringed suddenly. "Leo…" She breathed. "You do realize you and I are going to have to take the Sale'toma juice once we find the flowers, right?"

"…oh. Oh no." Leo suddenly looked like he'd been doused with a bucket cold water. And not because of the rain. "Oh…  _fuck_." He swore.

Velvet scolded harshly, "Leo! Language!" She glanced at Laphicet meaningfully.

"Hey, come on!" Leo yelped in his defense. "The kid's seen and heard much, much more traumatic things than a few dirty words." Leo pointed out. "Magilou, for one."

"What?! Why me?! Why not the murderous daemon that kills people left and right?!" Magilou whined, ignored by everyone.

"Besides!" Leo languished. "If there's one thing that deserves a swear or two, it's the fact that  _I have to drink Sale'toma juice._ " He suddenly fell to his knees onto the mud, all the abruptly energy sucked out of him. "…This is it." He moaned. "This is where it ends. I can't go further. Leave me. All of you. I'm  _done for!_ " He cried dramatically.

Laphicet blinked. "Is… it really that bad?"

Eleanor winced. "…Yes…" She shuddered, hugging herself anxiously. "This is the one time that Leo's complaining is actually fully legitimate."

Leo's eye twitched. He threw a glare at his mentor. "The one time?" He sighed. "…And here I thought I'd gotten away with it the first time."

"What first time?" Laphicet asked.

Eleanor explained, "It's been a long-standing tradition in the Abbey that new initiates are to drink Sale'toma Juice together. It's meant as a team-building exercise; suffering together as a group can bind teammates together like nothing else."

"And I didn't have to drink it since I had never enlisted." Leo clarified as he stood up morosely. "I've heard so many nasty tales and actually seen poor new recruits take the damn stuff." He shuddered. "The…  _noises_  they made when they drank it…"

Rokurou and Eizen exchanged glances. "That… sounds horrible." Rokurou muttered.

Velvet pointed out detachedly, "You do realize that since you're already showing symptoms, you have to take double the dosage once we get some, right?"

Leo stared at her uncomprehendingly. "…Oh,  _fuck me_."

"Language!" Velvet gave the man a kick to the knee.

"Ow, ow!" The man hissed as he hopped away from the offending leg. "Listen, I know you're a damn sadist, but could you hold off on the abuse until  _after_  I drink the nectar of the devil?" He demanded. "I've got enough suffering in store for me as it is!"

Laphicet gave the man a hearty pat on the back. "You've got this, Leo!" The malak urged. "Life is all about variety, right? So, the more pain you feel, the more alive you feel." He pointed out.

Leo glared at the adults in the group sans Eleanor. "…You've given this poor kid a twisted way of thinking, you know that?"

Velvet glared back. "Want to test his way of thinking?" She held up her right fist meaningfully.

Leo instinctively cringed and turned around. "Well!" He changed the subject abruptly. "I'm sick, so let's hurry up and get inside away from this rain!" He quickly retreated inside the inn, away from the menacing glare of the threatening daemon.

"My, oh my, how quickly the man runs." Magilou tittered. "I do feel sorry for him." She glanced pointedly at Velvet and Eleanor. "The amount of suffering he has to undergo for you two is positively heart-breaking. Such a thankless position." She noted wryly.

Eleanor let out a concurring sigh. "…I suppose you're right. I should make sure to thank him for his efforts." She decided.

Velvet rolled her eyes. "It was his idea in the first place." She pointed out. "Nobody's making him stay with us."

Eleanor gave the daemon a disapproving look. "While that might be true, his dedication is something to be thankful for." She shook her head in determination. "He's trying so hard to try and help both of us, despite our differences. Look at how much he's suffering just for us. Do you not feel even the smallest amount of gratitude for your old friend's help?"

Velvet looked away. "I'm a daemon. I hardly feel anything other than my need for vengeance. If Leo wants to follow me, that's his decision. I'll take no responsibility for what happens because of his stupidity."

The exorcist's eyebrows narrowed. "…You don't mean that." She accused.

"It's just how things are, Eleanor." Eizen interjected roughly. "Let her be. We're all here for our own different reasons, in the end."

' _Even you'_ , said the unspoken accusation.

Eleanor was at a loss for words at that.

Magilou piped up. "Well! I'd say it's time to call it a night! We've got plenty of flower-hunting to do tomorrow, after all."

Rokurou nodded. "I'd say. I've got some extra training to do before bed." He grinned. "I'd bet you anything that we'll be running into that exorcist-killing daemon tomorrow."

Magilou grinned predatorially. "Oh, is that so? How much are we talking here?"

"50 gald."

"You're on! May the best witch win!" Magilou declared happily.

Rokurou shook his head in exasperation. The two walked up the wooden stairs inside the inn.

Eizen grunted. "Come on, Laphicet. You wanted to see what poker was, right?"

Laphicet's face lit up. "Yeah!"

"What's that? Poker?" Velvet asked curiously.

Eizen explained, "It's a game that utilizes a deck of cards shuffled randomly." He splayed his palms conversationally. "Many people say it's a game of luck, but I would argue it's a game of absolute skill and knowledge. A game of calculated probability, if you would."

Eleanor narrowed her eyes. "You are aware that the Abbey banned all forms of unlicensed street gambling, correct?"

"We won't be using real money, Eleanor!" Laphicet piped up. "We're just playing for fun!"

The exorcist's face instantly lost all authority in the face of the child's enthusiasm. "Well… I suppose it wouldn't hurt if that's the case." She hedged.

Velvet shrugged noncommittally. "Well, have fun with that. As long as you don't go on to actually play for money." Her own eyes narrowed as she leaned forward towards the malak pointedly. "Gambling is a bad habit for many people." She lectured. "To some people it's even more intoxicating than alcohol. Make absolute sure you don't fall into that trap too, Laphicet."

Eizen grunted in offense. "Just who do you think I am? I'd be the last person on Midgand to want to teach the kid to bet actual money on a game of chance."

Eleanor blinked. "The… Reaper's Curse, is it?" She asked skeptically. She blinked. "…But, if what you say about the curse is true, won't it negatively affect the game when you play it, even if it won't be for money?"

"Who knows." Eizen shrugged. "Who knows. The kid just read about it in one of the old books on the Van Eltia and wanted to play."

Velvet shook her head. "Why do I get a bad feeling about this…"

The four of them walked into the inn, out from underneath the pouring rain.

* * *

The fire roared in the quaint little inn lobby. Outside, night had fallen, and the rain still quietly and constantly plinked on top of the tiled roof and onto the glass behind the drawn curtains. The occasional howl of wind provided momentary punctuation in the long dialogue of the sounds of the rain.

"Are you serious?"

The sound of the rain was interrupted briefly by the bang of Leo's forehead slamming against the desk, rattling the cards on the table.

Eizen gave a shrug. "I warned you." He reminded loftily.

Leo picked up his face from the table and glared at the cards on the table.

Somehow (he had no idea how it had happened) one thing had led to another, leading to the five of them; Eizen, Rokurou, Bienfu, Laphicet, and himself; playing a few friendly hands of poker in the middle of the night in the empty lobby of the inn.

Well. "Playing" was a very generous word.

"How does that even…?" Leo muttered to himself as he stared out at the hands laid out on the table. Somehow, against all the damn odds (and all the damn logic apparently), everyone had the same  _exact_  hand. Right down to the suit. It apparently didn't matter that such a thing  _physically wasn't possible_. For crying out loud there weren't that many physical cards in a deck of cards!

Rokurou grinned, pitching back another shot of sake. "Hah!" He barked a laugh. "I wish Eleanor was awake to see this! Reaper's curse at its finest."

"Don't you mean its worst?" Bienfu grumbled, gathering the cards together back into one stack from his position on top the table.

The three women had gone to bed in their own respective room long before this game had come to fruition. Lucky for them.

"Should we try again?" Laphicet asked eagerly, despite the reoccurring failures. "Maybe… we can try shuffling the cards differently?" He proposed.

Bienfu muttered, "Yeah, and while we're at it, we can try and flip Eizen's coin to land on heads by throwing it off a cliff." The sour malak reached for a cup of Rokurou's sake but was promptly denied when the man snatched the container and downed it in a single gulp.

"Something up your butt, Bienfu?" Leo asked the grumbling malak.

The malak sighed morosely. "…Miss Magilou told me that I'm the one who's going to take the Sale'toma, since a malak can take the medicine for the master and it works just fine." He moaned. "I… don't want to taste the bad-bad flower again!" He bawled as his head landed on the table with a fwump.

Leo blinked. "Again? What do you mean?"

The malak just moaned incoherently into the table in response.

Laphicet cringed. "D-does that mean that Eleanor's going to ask  _me_  to take the medicine for her?!"

Rokurou chuckled, putting down an empty cup on the table. "No way." He denied with certainty. "I can't see our good-hearted exorcist  _ever_  making a little boy like you suffer for her."

Laphicet let out a breath of blessed relief.

Hawk chose this moment to hop on the table and stare daggers at Leo.

"…What?" Leo asked his malak innocently.

A low growl.

Leo sighed. "Fine, yes. I promise I won't make you take any Sale'toma for me. Little disloyal runt." He grumbled.

Hawk huffed with satisfaction and turned around to lick Laphicet.

"Haha, looks like we're in the clear, Hawk!" Laphicet laughed, hugging the malak and taking him off the table into his lap.

On the other side of the table, Leo reached sourly for Rokurou's alcohol.

"Ah-ah. No alcohol for the sick. You're weak enough as it is." Rokurou berated, holding the cup out of reach.

"Blasted daemon." Leo cursed in dismay.

Eizen asked seriously, "Leo. How're you feeling? Are you sure you're up to coming with us to the Warg Forest tomorrow?"

Collecting himself, the man returned with a determined nod. "Absolutely." He confirmed. "I'm still in the early stages, it seems. Besides," he shrugged, "I have to make sure Eleanor and Velvet don't kill each other while I'm not looking."

Laphicet, still clutching onto Hawk, tilted his head. "I don't think they hate each other than much… Actually, I saw Eleanor offering to mend Velvet's clothes the other day at Port Cadnix." He grinned. "Velvet was actually really thankful for her offer!"

Leo blinked. "Yeah, well, now that you mention it, Eleanor has been getting along with Velvet surprisingly well."

Rokurou noted, "As well as a daemon and an exorcist can get along, you mean."

Leo shrugged. "Yeah. As it turns out, they actually have quite a bit in common, in terms of how strong they are, and how much they care for Laphicet."

Rokurou grinned, "Don't let either of them hear you saying that. You might be in for a beating."

Laphicet laughed at Leo's cringe. "Although, they've been caring a bit too much for me lately." He himself winced. "Velvet was already pretty strict before, but now Eleanor apparently also feels the need to tell me about stuff like when to wash my hands and what not to play with."

Leo nodded sagely. "Eleanor's always had a bit of a motherly streak in her." He recounted. "Not as much as Velvet, I'd say, but a formidable rival." His face grew nostalgic. "…Honestly Laphicet? I totally feel you. I swear both of them forget the fact that I'm older than them and just keep telling me to eat my vegetables every meal nowadays."

"They do that for all of us." Rokurou pointed out dryly.

Eizen nodded with a wince. "Velvet in particular seems to have it out for me and my habit of not finishing my own food."

Bienfu grumbled from his slumped seat on the table. "Madam Eleanor always tells me to wash my hands before eating. We malakhim don't even get that sick that often!" He complained.

Hawk whined in Laphicet's arms. Apparently, he'd also been mothered by the two at some point.

Laphicet laughed as all of the grown-ups around him continued to moan about being mothered. "I guess that's just how Velvet and Eleanor are."

Leo grumbled, "I swear Velvet becoming a daemon just made her even more of a nag when it comes to this stuff." His face softened lightly. "Back then, she would always ask to make sure I was eating enough, and that I was keeping myself hydrated whenever I went hunting with her. Some crap about maintaining nutrition."

Rokurou nodded sagely. "She was right to do so. All Rangetsu family members know the value of keeping one well-nourished, to better maintain one's focus and control. I was always taught that eating well and maintaining my equipment and body was half the battle. That the actual fighting depended on what you did before the first blade was drawn."

Eizen grunted. "Such a strict regimen. Didn't you ever feel the need to simply let loose and eat what you wanted to eat, and to drink what you wanted to drink?"

Rokurou shrugged. "It's become second nature to me." He abruptly remembered the cup of sake in his hand. "…Although my masters always weren't too happy about my drinking habit." He gave another shrug and pitched the sake into his throat.

"That's amazing, Rokurou!" Laphicet commented brightly. "No wonder you're so strong!"

Eizen's eye twitched imperceptibly at this.

He cleared his throat. "While eating and drinking and maintaining one's body can be important," he conceded shallowly, "what's most indicative of strength is raw training." He grinned savagely. "And nothing trains one harder than trying to beat the wind and the waves on the open ocean."

Rokurou's gaze sharpened. "I disagree. The  _best_ way to train is 10,000 practice swings a day. That way you maintain uniform development, no matter how rough the waves or wind are."

Eizen's ire was palatable. "On the contrary. The human body isn't a machine. It's an astonishingly complex work of nature, that needs to be treated as such."

Rokurou butted horns with the sailor. "That's irrelevant. The body is what you make it to be. If your only way of training is pulling ropes and climbing sails, that's what you'll be best at. If you swing a sword as training, you'll be best at swinging swords. That's how you'll beat battles."

Eizen glared. "Some might say that sailing in of itself is a harsh never-ending battle against the forces of nature itself."

Rokurou grinned. "Well, then if we ever decide to fight a puddle of water, I'll let you know."

Laphicet, Leo, Hawk, and Bienfu all exchanged glances as the two continued to bicker incessantly over the merits of training by sword or by sail.

"…I'm going to go to bed." Leo whispered to the others as the argument continued.

Laphicet nodded, whispering back, "Goodnight, Leo. I'll try to calm them down in a bit."

Bienfu grunted. "I suppose I should go back to Miss Magilou now…" He whimpered.

Hawk yipped a goodnight to Leo, still clinging firmly onto Laphicet.

Leo gave the wolf a mock look of betrayal and quietly slipped out of the lobby as the shouting became more and more heated.

"Naturally, the best way to practice discipline is to do the same training regimen every single day, no matter what happened." Rokurou declared heatedly. "Of all the things in battle, keeping a calm and level head is the most important!"

Eizen fought back, "Nonsense! In a battle, the only things that matters is pure, raw, untamed instinct. The best thing to do is to let yourself flow with the tide of battle, ebbing and flowing naturally with your opponents. That's what makes the difference between living and dying."

"No! What makes the difference is being firm and collected!" Rokurou shouted hotly.

Eizen yelled back, "What makes the difference is being free and wild!"

Suddenly, the door to the girl's room slammed open and out stormed an absolutely furious clawed daemon in sleepwear into the lobby.

"Both of you, shut the hell up before I devour your heads!"

* * *

Leo let out a content breath as he sat down at his desk in the empty room designated for the four men in the group.

He pulled his coat off his body and reached inside his jacket, pulling out and organizing his collection of bullets on the table fondly. He was extremely proud of the results of his experimenting with local-universe materials. There were the usual malak-infused metal rifle rounds placed in a large group, but there were also a few incendiary rounds and penetrating rounds utilizing brightsteel found in Islegand. The main body of the actual projectile was still malak-infused, so these bullets would still inflict the normal amount of damage on top of the addition effect of it exploding/piercing.

All the rounds had been fully and thoroughly tested to prevent jams and for accuracy and precision, to the best of his rather competent crafting ability. For all intents and purposes, all these new experimental rounds needed was a field test.

Leo rubbed his hands in manic glee. He couldn't wait to try these out in combat.

There was a knock on the door.

"Leo?"

The pseudo-exorcist turned around and saw Laphicet walking in, Hawk following dutifully in behind him. "Hey there, Laphicet. Done playing?" Leo asked as he meticulously stashed his may rounds in their designated pockets in his coat.

Laphicet nodded. "Can I… ask you something?" The malak asked hesitantly.

"'Course." Leo agreed, turning in his seat to face the malak, curious. It was something he didn't want to ask the other guys, apparently.

"The thing is…" Laphicet started hesitantly. He confessed rather quickly, "Velvet and Eleanor keep fighting over me. It's been getting really exhausting and I… really don't know what to do." The poor boy looked hopelessly lost.

Leo laughed. "You poor soul." He commented dryly. "Trust me kid, I know how you feel." He grinned sympathetically. "They're just trying to show their affection."

Laphicet shook his head. "No, that's not it!" He searched for words. "Velvet keeps on saying that I should be careful of Eleanor, since she's an exorcist and malaks are only tools to her…" He looked conflicted. "But Eleanor acts so kindhearted!"

Leo nodded sagely. "…Beware a woman's tears, huh?"

"That's what Eizen and Rokurou said too!" Laphicet gaped at him.

Leo grinned. "It's the truth of women. All men know this, of course."

Laphicet didn't seen enlightened.

Leo continued, "Anyways, with regards to that… well." He shrugged. "You'll just have to think for yourself in this regard. It's a good idea to remember that you're your own person, right? You're no longer Teresa's Number Two."

Laphicet nodded. "Yeah. I'm my own person." He stated firmly.

The malak cocked his head. "So… you're saying I should just say what I think to the two of them?"

Leo scrunched his face. He wasn't good at this. "No… How should I put it…?"

He snapped his fingers. "You should take everything in, and then think for yourself. Figure out what you yourself think is right. That's what growing up is all about." He stated wisely.

"So, for now," he proposed, "just observe what's going on; what the two of them say and do." He grinned. "I know Velvet can be really overprotective and Eleanor can be rather misguided, but in the end, both of them obviously care for you, Laphicet. Keep that in mind, whatever you decide to do."

Laphicet nodded firmly. "…Okay! Thanks, Leo!" He chirped.

Leo grinned. "Anytime, Laphicet. Come to me whenever those two give you grief. I can tell you that no matter what, the two of them are a real handful and a half, that's for fucking sure."

He leaned in close to the kid abruptly. "Don't tell them I swore." He whispered. "They'd beat me up for it."

Laphicet giggled. "It'll be our secret." He whispered back.

Leo grinned. "Alright kid, off to bed with you." He swatted at the malak good-naturedly. "Go brush your teeth."

Laphicet nodded and left the room, headed off to the washroom, leaving Leo sitting there contemplatively. He glanced at Hawk curled up on Laphicet's bed contently watching him. "You know Hawk, I really hope Velvet and Eleanor won't mind me giving him advice counter to their positions."

Hawk yawned.

Leo chuckled. "Alright, lazy mutt, I'll stop bothering you." He grinned himself. "…Looks like I'm part of the group. For better or for worse." He observed softly.

The rain lulled Leo peacefully to sleep that night.

**End of Part 2 – The Van Eltia.**


	21. C19 - Rain

**Chapter 19 – Rain.**

Tap, Tap, Tap.

The pattering of light rain upon the dense canopy of the Warg Forest was constant. Birds chirped from their hidden shelters dotted here and there within the partially dry bark underneath. Insects buzzed away relentlessly despite the downpour. The bunches of grass periodically carpeting the forest floor grew greener underneath the pleasant shower. It was peaceful. Tranquil.

Such tranquility was abruptly broken by a vicious chorus of howling alongside the distinct clamor of a heated battle taking place. The rain quickly became part of an irrelevant backdrop to a fierce conflict.

"Eleanor! Crossfire Left!"

Leo barked sharply as the jerked his rifle up and tracked the erratic lycanthrope attacking his comrade.

"Understood!" Was the reply as Eleanor swiftly leapt to her right side, leaving the daemon in direct line of sight of Leo standing across the battlefield.

Not wasting the opportunity, Leo slid his right index finger with practiced ease into the trigger guard and squeezed in a single fluid movement.

CRACK!

The rifle went off with a sharp report, the muzzle flash distinctly reminiscent of lightning in the rain. The large group of lycanthropes the group was fighting all flinched instinctively at the unnatural sound. On the other hand, the group simply used the distraction to press their own attacks, fighting onward with vigor against the monsters.

Leo watched in satisfaction as the rifle round he'd fired perfectly anticipated the daemon's erratic movement and pierced its center of mass eliciting a howl of agony. The daemon clutched at the entry wound in animalistic shock as blood spurted out between its hairy fingers.

With a cry, Eleanor swiftly spun around and cleanly decapitated it with a violent slash of her spearhead through its neck. As the body and head slopped down onto the mud separate of each other, the exorcist gave a concise nod of thanks to Leo.

Leo gave a quick salute in return. He registered Eleanor's eyes widening abruptly and turned around in alarm just in time to see a different daemon rushing towards him with terrifying velocity. He readied his gauntlet blade in preparation for the imminent clash, gritting his teeth firmly. This wasn't going to be pleasant.

" **DEVOUR!"**

The harsh cry preceded the charging werewolf's howl of pain as Velvet leapt out of nowhere in front of Leo and slashed her massive blood red claw diagonally across the attacker's entire body, crushing its momentum and sending it flying harshly to the side. Blood squirted everywhere and was quickly absorbed by the ever-ravenous appendage as it cleaved through the air. Velvet didn't let up, fiercely charging after the daemon as it landed and attacking with blindingly fast kicks and sword swings.

"Watch yourself!" She ordered sharply, dodging a nasty swipe of claws and retaliating with her own claw, driving the beast further away from her vulnerable group member.

"But if I watch myself, how can I see the bad guys?" Leo snarked back as he roughly pushed the lever on his rifle, ejecting a spent shell and chambering a new one. Threat having been driven away by his therion friend, the pseudo-exorcist took a good glance around for any further potential targets. One quickly revealed itself across the battlefield.

Leo reseated the rifle back in the groove of his right shoulder in precise muscle memory and aimed. "Magilou! Crossfire right!" He yelled.

" _Right_  away!" Came the sing-song response.

CRACK!

The witch danced (in typical Magilou fashion) out of the way to the left with a spin, letting way for the fired round which proceeded to violently gouge itself straight through the upper bicep of the daemon.

"Didn't see that coming, did you now?!" Magilou cackled as she whipped around with an elongated guardian in hand vengefully.

Support accomplished, Leo's eyes left the witch as he looked around, gauging the statuses of the rest of the group. "Laphicet!" He prompted the malak standing close by his side. "I think Eizen could do with some help. Concentrate fire over there, would you?" He asked seriously.

"Right!" The boy nodded sharply and started casting offensive spells in that direction.

Leo kept a sharp eye around the boy. The two of them were always best at ranged distances, so the group had developed the general strategy of having the two of them be close together in battle. Leo was best at strategy and picking off precise targets while Laphicet was fantastic at healing artes and devastating ranged mana artes. Everyone else tried their best to keep the enemies away from both of them. And it just worked well this way.

Abruptly, Leo noticed out of the corner of his eye a daemon abandoning its fight with Rokurou and instead going for the casting malak. "Hawk! Burn him!"

The man's lesser malak appeared with a howl, sending a quick fireball towards the daemon making him stumble and become an easier target.

A quick round burrowed its way through the daemon's left thigh, eliciting a harsh howl and causing the wolf to stumble into the mud and struggle to recover. A quick lever push and pull and a trigger pull later, the wolf had stopped moving for good.

Laphicet cast a quick healing spell to Rokurou across the field with a brilliant flash, illuminating the world around him.

"Thanks, kid! I'm in your debt!" The daemon shouted gratefully while dodging and weaving with his strange dual-sword technique, his wounds briefly repaired by the malak magic.

"Reloading!" Leo announced, reaching into his pocket for fresh rounds.

_Well, no time like the present._ He muttered mentally as he selected a different interior pocket to pull rounds from.

"Do it!" Eizen yelled as he ran to Leo's side, taking up stance in front of the vulnerable target. Two daemons charged the man only to be driven off by startlingly precise, vicious punches. One particular swing smacked especially hard on one of the two wolves and knocked it completely unconscious.

Trusting his companion to keep him safe (or to warn him if it wasn't), Leo focused his full attention on reloading quickly. One round was slotted into the feed and chambered with a cock of the lever. Three more rounds were slotted afterwards, leaving the rifle at full capacity.

"Leo!"

Eizen's urgent bark snapped the man's attention directly towards the wolf that had leapt clean over the reaper towards the immobile rifleman. He reacted instinctively, springing backwards and bringing his rifle up. At this close range, there was no point in using iron sights. He bunched the stock up against his shoulder and pulled the trigger.

CH-CRACK!

The rifle suddenly coughed out an abnormally large muzzle flash, the kickback arriving at his shoulder with much more vigor than normal.

The man gaped as the improvised shotgun shell he had fired utterly  _obliterated_ the daemon attacking him. The daemon was forcefully thrown off-track and spiraled harshly into the mud, rolling over a few times before finally coming to a stop in the mud far away from the man whom had killed it. A thick cloud of gunpowder clouded the rainy air in the wake of the shot.

Leo blinked in amazement. Then he groaned. "Agh!"

"You alright?" Eizen asked over his shoulder as he backhanded another approaching daemon, sending it flying backwards whining in pain.

"Maybe… Maybe I should've taken it easy on the gunpowder in that shell." Leo moaned as he rubbed his sore shoulder, his rifle held limply in his hands. "Anymore and that blast could've dislocated my shoulder."

"Stop whining and start fighting!" Velvet snarled from the other side of the battlefield, flying through the air in an inhuman leap with her hidden boot blade drawing bloody figures in the air.

"Slavedriver!" Leo threw back grouchily as he cocked his rifle three times, emptying the magazine tube, and fully reloaded it with regular bullets that  _didn't_ destroy his shoulder. "Thanks for the help, Eizen." He thanked over his shoulder, raising his rifle once more.

The reaper gave a nod and took off, headed to help Rokurou with his own battle.

Suddenly, another chorus of howls rose through the air making Leo cringe. "Watch it! More on their way!" He raised his rifle and aimed at a group of lycanthropes charging from the woodwork at the skirmish.

"Come on!" Magilou whined. "Can't we get a break?!"

Rokurou grinned back while absently slashing a wide arc in front of him, drawing blood. "Breaks don't make you stronger!" He pointed out, driving off two werewolves at once with another vicious slash.

Magilou gave the cheerful daemon a flat look, interrupting her arte. "Neither does dying, you know!" She flicked her hand and finished her incantation, causing an earth-shattering explosion to occur behind her.

Eizen yelled with a punch to a daemon's stomach, "Then don't die!" His punch landed with bone-shattering force and sent the wolf flying.

"Easy for you to say…" Leo muttered sourly as he sucked in a breath.

CRACK!

Leo cursed as his round missed its mark and bounced uselessly off a drenched tree trunk. His target dodged and weaved its way alarmingly quickly towards the man, making for a very, very difficult target. "Damnit!" He swore as he cocked the rifle and tried again.

CRACK!

Another miss, the ricochet whistling pointlessly over the canopy.

And then there was no more time for another shot as the daemon was upon him. Leo quickly dropped his rifle, letting the strap save it from falling into the mud, and lunged away desperately, dodging the flying pair of claws intending to eviscerate him by a hair. He landed roughly and awkwardly in the mud, struggling to scramble to his feet.

"Too damn close!" He cursed. "Hawk!"

The wolf yipped and sent a quick fireball at the monster.

The werewolf howled in protest as he was set on fire. The flames however quickly puttered out underneath the light rain. Nevertheless, Leo sprinted up to it with a cry, stabbing his blade out in a quick and precise motion towards the creature's neck.

The monster dodged it easily, and in retaliation, slung a vicious open claw at him. Leo, in the middle of his follow-through, didn't have time to fully dodge.

"AGH!" Leo cried out in pain as the cold claw shredded violently through his coat and into his skin. Blood immediately began squirting out from the newly inflicted wounds on his chest and began running down the inside of his clothes. With a massive effort, Leo pushed through the searing pain in the left side of his chest and threw himself to the side, away from the other claw swiping at him in an attempt to finish him off.

He ordered through clenched teeth, "Flame Wall!" Hawk instantly responded, his eyes burning red with power as the ground in front of the daemon burned red hot with mana. The mud instantly burst, spewing out flames between Leo and the daemon. The monster roared in pain as it was assaulted by the sudden heat and staggered back away from the flames.

The mana-intensive arte ended quickly, the flames vanishing and leaving behind a round hollow tube made up of metal pointed directly at the daemon.

CRACK!

The leftover smoke from both the fire arte and the detonation of the gunpowder hung in the air as the lycanthrope crashed down lifelessly onto the ground with a large hole in the side of its neck, dead.

"Leo! Give me a hand!"

The man's gaze snapped in the direction of the call and saw that Velvet had been driven away from the group by four lycanthropes all hounding her incessantly, giving her no opening to attack. The pack of daemons had obviously decided that this particular woman was the biggest threat out of all of the group and were banding together to take her down.

"Velvet! Crossfire left! Three!" The code words were let out sharply as Leo took a knee in the mud, hissing in pain as he lifted his left arm and held the barrel out in front of him shakily.

"Do it!" She yelled back, slashing at the wolves in an aggressive move to drive them to her left side.

He breathed in, and he breathed out. His aim steadied.

CRACK!

CRACK!

CRACK!

Three successive shots landed somewhere in the group of daemons (although Leo had no idea which shots had hit where) and caused enough general damage and distraction to turn the tide. Velvet capitalized on the distraction wreaked by her hunting partner by leaping up inhumanly high into the air with her claw held out towards the heavens.

"BREAK BOOST!" She roared as she descended claw first.

The ground trembled violently as the therion impacted the ground, veins of mana-infused energy spiking out from where her claws had impaled the mud. Blood flew everywhere as all four daemons were obliterated at once in a storm of violent mana. Blood that was eagerly sucked into the monstrous arm as the arte dissipated.

"Thanks!" Velvet yelled back as she promptly jerked her claw upwards from the ground, immediately rushing towards the opponents Eleanor was battling.

With a grunt, Leo stood back up and reloaded his rifle, keeping his head on a swivel. A firm hand on his wounds in an attempt to stem the bleeding from his claw wound, he took a good look around.

It became apparent that everyone else was finishing up. The reinforcements were dying out while the main body of daemons they had originally been assaulted by were all already on the floor bleeding to death. He let out a sigh of relief but kept his eyes vigilant, always the designated overwatch personnel.

It would seem that the Reneed townsfolk hadn't been kidding when they'd warned them about a daemon menace in the Warg forest.

"You alright?" Leo turned around to see Velvet strolling through the mud having already devoured a good number of her kills. Her claw was still out at her side dripping with residual blood, as was her face.

The picture of an evil monster.

Leo grunted an assent. "I'll survive." He pointed wryly at his left cheek. "You've got something on your face by the way."

Ignoring him, Velvet turned and called, "Laphicet!"

The boy in question gave one last glance to his current patient, making sure Rokurou's wounds had been properly set, before running over. "Are you hurt Leo?" He asked with wide concerned eyes.

Leo grunted. "Shoulder; claw-" He hissed as he laboriously took his coat off, revealing the blood-soaked shirt underneath. "-straight down the left shoulder." He lifted his shirt to the open air, showing off three sizable gashes running from his stomach to his left shoulder.

Laphicet bent down and hummed, looking over the nasty bleeding wound with a practiced eye. "It's not too bad. It looks like it managed to get its claws maybe a quarter of the way into your skin. Here." He lifted both his hands.

Leo sighed in bliss as the malak healing arte flooded his nervous system and turned the pain receptors off. The quirks of some worlds never ceased to amaze him.

"That lunge was pathetic." Velvet analyzed derisively. "You were overconfident and expected the strike to land, and when it didn't, it left you completely open to a counterattack."

Leo winced in pain as Laphicet began a different healing spell to knit flesh. "Evidently, huh?" He hissed, glancing up from his wounds to meet the therion's eyes. "I never got nearly as good at using a gauntlet blade as you."

Velvet sighed. "That lack of training's going to get you killed some day, you know?"

"Velvet?" Laphicet spoke up, looking up at the woman. "Why don't you teach Leo then?" He proposed abruptly. "You both use the same weapons after all."

Eleanor walked over at that exact moment and gave her input. "That's not a bad idea, actually." She commented seriously.

Leo raised his eyebrow in surprise at the exorcist. "You're not insulted that another person will be my master?"  _And because that person is Velvet, of all people?_

Eleanor shook her head, eying the wound on Leo's body with worry. "Not at all. I did admit to you at the start of our training that I'd never had any experience with such a weapon… I imagine Velvet has much to offer you in that respect." She met the eyes of the daemon with grudging respect. "As Leo's former teacher, I ask that you take the time out and do what Laphicet is suggesting." She posed the question formally.

Velvet's eyes travelled between Eleanor, Laphicet, and Leo before she sighed.

"…As long as he promises to not slack off, I suppose I can teach him a few things or two if it lets him fight for me better." She agreed reluctantly.

Leo grinned. "Alright! I'll take it! Thanks, Velvet."

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "Don't look so enthusiastic. You're going to be trained by a daemon, after all." An evil glint appeared in her eyes. "You'd better not waste my time." She growled lowly.

Leo cringed. "Right…"

Laphicet laughed. "Good luck Leo!"

Eleanor nodded thankfully. "I appreciate it, truly. Thank you." She gave a slight bow.

Velvet turned a harsh gaze onto the exorcist. "I'm not doing it for you, you know." She pointed out. "Having a fighter that's less prone to dying in a fight is beneficial to me, that's all."

Leo's grin didn't waver. "Ah, yes, because I'm your tool, yes?" He prompted wryly.

Velvet gave him a smirk. "More like you are a tool, but either way works."

With that exchange over with the therion walked off, reextending her claw and proceeding to eat the rest of the helpless daemons dying on the ground.

"Ouch." Leo muttered as she walked away. The light of Laphicet's healing arte faded away as he finished healing, leaving nothing but a very light scar on the skin in place of the wound.

"Gotta say," Leo commented, "Of all the things malaks can do, I'd say healing is the best." He gave Laphicet a thankful pat on the head. "Now what would've meant infection and a slow feverish death in the wild means a bit of pain and no repercussions!"

"Don't be so sure about that!" Laphicet urgently reminded the man. "If you get hurt badly enough, there's no way you can survive, malak healing or not!"

Leo acquiesced quickly. "Yeah, doc. Whatever you say, I'll be more careful in the future! It's not like I  _enjoy_  searing agony after all." Eleanor helped him back onto his feet with a grunt. The man slid his shirt back on along with his coat, brushing off as much of the mud from the clothing as possible. "…Wish there was an arte that cleaned the blood off of clothes though." He muttered as he tried his best to dry the sticky blood-soiled section of his shirt.

Eleanor sighed sympathetically. "I know. Out here, there's hardly anywhere to do laundry. It's quite unfortunate." She glanced up at the murky skies. "…At least it's raining. It'll wash off soon enough."

Leo suddenly had an idea. "Oh! Hawk!"

The wolf in question loped over to him from his patrols around the group and cocked his head to the side inquisitively.

"Can you maintain a small flame near my clothes long enough to dry a shirt while it's being worn?"

Hawk gave him a flat stare.

Laphicet giggled, "Leo, I don't think Hawk appreciates doing chores for you."

"Nonsense!" Leo waved a dismissive, arrogant hand. "A proper tool should always obey the will of his master! Now! Do my bidding, filthy cur!" He ordered with a cut of his hand.

Hawk simply huffed and conjured a candle-sized flame to singe his master's insolent face.

"Gah!" Leo cringed away from the puff of heat. "I'm kidding! Does no one take a good joke around here?!"

Eleanor deadpanned. "That's insinuating that your jokes are even remotely good."

"Ow…" Leo whined. "That hurts even more than a claw to the shoulder…"

* * *

The rest of the group gathered together underneath the canopy in the aftermath of the battle. All the daemons had been consumed by Velvet while all the major injuries had been attended to by Laphicet.

"Everyone ready to move on?" Velvet prompted, trotting over with a now normal bandaged left arm cleaned of blood by the rain.

"I'd say." Leo nodded. "How much further do you think we'll have to search for those Sale'toma flowers?"

Eizen spoke up. "The herbalists all said they're in bloom in the area. Since we've searched for hours already, we should find them sooner rather than later." He splayed his hands with a shrug. "At least, that's the theory."

Magilou added cheerily, "Unless this whole time we've been searching the flowers were all under our feet! Dyed green by the rain by some dastardly trick of the rain! Crunch!" She cried with a dramatic hop for emphasis. "The Reaper's Curse has doomed us in all the dastardliest ways possible!"

Velvet grimaced (as was generally the natural response to Magilou as a whole) and muttered, "I doubt that would be the case. Hawk would've smelt the flowers a long time before then." She gave the wolf a glance.

Laphicet beamed and lovingly latched onto the wolf who yipped in response to his captivity and licked the malak back on the cheek. "Haha!" Laphicet giggled. "Hawk smells stuff so much better than us, don't you Hawk?" He snuggled with the wet pup.

Leo sent a deadpan stare in the witch's direction. "He smells bullcrap real good too." He warned pointedly. "He tends to bite the evil witches who utter it."

Magilou gave a flawlessly innocent smile. "Oh? Well that's good to know! This witch in particular absolutely  _despises_ such pesky witches! The great Miss Magilou  _never_  lies! That's why they call her Honest Magi!"

Rokurou uncrossed an arm to point behind her. "If that's the case, then why is Bienfu shaking his head so hard behind your back?"

Magilou's smile froze. With a twitching eye, she turned slowly around to glare at the offending normin malak in question. "…Why indeed?" She asked evilly in a low voice.

Having been caught in the act, Bienfu stammered in denial, "M-Miss Magilou! I-I wasn't-"

WHACK!

"BIEEEEEeeeeeeeeeeee…!" The yell of agony grew smaller and smaller as the witch's violent kick sent the normin into the sky faster than a round fired from Leo's rifle.

"Well! I guess we'll never know!" Magilou sang with her hands casually behind her neck as she trotted forwards, humming to herself. Rokurou and Eizen exchanged shrugs before following dutifully after her.

Laphicet blinked as he let go of Hawk, standing up curiously. "So… Does that mean that Magilou… lies?" He asked.

"She does."

"She does."

"She does."

Leo, Velvet, and Eleanor all deadpanned at the same time.

Laphicet cocked his head to the side in befuddlement. "But… Magilou's never lied to  _me_  before…"

Leo, Velvet, and Eleanor just stared.

Leo muttered, "Ah, to be young and innocent…"

Eleanor sighed. "To be free from any heavy worries…" She shook her head.

Velvet facepalmed. "To be an idiot…" She breathed.

Laphicet just stared on in confusion as the three group members in front of him muttered inaudibly under their breaths.

"Huh?" He glanced down to find Hawk nudging his body with his muzzle. "What is it, Hawk?"

The nudging got more persistent.

"You want me to move?"

A nod.

"Alright then." Laphicet took a few steps back in the direction of the wolf's nudges. "Is this good?" He asked.

Hawk pointedly stepped back a few steps and looked up.

Laphicet, Leo, Velvet, and Eleanor all followed the pup's gaze as it rose slowly upwards into the sky.

"…eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeEEEEEEENNNN!"

SPLAT.

Bienfu groaned incomprehensibly in the mud where Laphicet had just been standing a few moments ago, his body twitching in agony.

"Oh, Bienfu! Are you alright?!" Eleanor hurried to the fallen normin's side.

Suddenly, the malak shot straight up into the air with paws clasped together in delight. "Oh Madam Eleanor! I'm so touched that you care so much for me!" He sang in a high-pitched voice. "Ohhhh, you're  _so_ much better than that lying witch!"

Eleanor drew back from the enthusiastic normin. "Well, you seem normal at least…"

"I'm always normal! We normin are amazingly resilient creatures! Tell them Eleanor! Tell them how special I am compared to the others!"

"You... well, actually, according to the Abbey's standards, objectively speaking, you're actually rather average in terms of greater malaks." She shifted a finger over her chin in thought. "In terms of resilience you don't really bring too much to the table, while your elemental focus isn't anywhere near as developed as some malaks like Zaveid. Furthermore, your raw arte power is nothing compared to Laphicet's. Even your normin powers as augmentation of powers aren't particularly exceptional." She shook her head. "Really, the single strongest thing you have going for you is your somewhat okay looks, but that's completely subjective." She summarized efficiently and concisely.

"Bieeeheheheeeeeen…" Bienfu whined as he returned back to the mud in a defeated faceplant. "…Madam Eleanor, would it kill you to tell a lie at least once in a while?" He groaned into the mud, weakly swatting at Hawk who was attempting to sniff the hat on top his head.

"So… Eleanor never lies." Laphicet concluded from Bienfu's words. "…So then why does Bienfu not like her telling the truth if he doesn't like how Magilou lies?"

Leo just pinched his nose. "Some things in life, Laphicet," He offered sagely, "you just can't understand. Let's just leave it at that."

Laphicet didn't look any more enlightened.

* * *

"So, Leo," Magilou began, falling in step with the man as the group continued their search, "during the battle, I couldn't help but notice one of those little cannon firings sounding a little bit different than the others."

Eizen hummed, also falling into step with the other two. "I noticed that as well. It seemed as if your cannon fired with too much power, causing the daemon you were shooting at to be completely obliterated upon impact."

Leo winced as the twinge in his firing shoulder made itself known again at the reminder. "Yeah," he rubbed his shoulder. "It was a field test gone wrong, I suppose."

Laphicet blinked as he caught up with them. "A test?" He chirped curiously. "Were you firing something different this time?"

Leo nodded, pulling out a red-colored rifle round. "It was a bit of an impulsive idea, but I'd thought I'd done all the calculations correctly… evidently not." He shook his head, meeting the malak's eyes. "It's meant to be a scatter shot round." He explained. "Instead of one bullet, there's a lot of tiny pellets contained within a large shell that breaks up upon discharge."

Eizen nodded appreciatively. "That way, the impact is spread out and there's a greater chance of dealing damage in more places and increasing the amount of overall surface damage rather than deep penetrating damage." He blinked in amazement. "How in the world did you come up with that?"

Leo shrugged.

Magilou spoke up, "Never mind that, where'd it all go wrong?" She grinned slyly. "I remember hearing your whining across the battlefield if I remember correctly. I'd almost thought that a little banshee had shown up to attack us."

Leo glared at the witch. "…You know what? I don't have to take that from you." He promptly grabbed his rifle and emptied the magazine tube into his hands. With deft movements, the man inserted a single red-colored round and offered the weapon to the witch. "Here.  _You_ try it." He cocked the rifle, grinning evilly.

Magilou eyed the weapon with trepidation. "Ah! Perhaps another time…" She let out nervously. "I'm not a fan of big loud bangy things."

Eizen muttered, "What about the cannons in the Van Eltia that you're always firing for no reason?"

Magilou gave him a pout. "Those are obviously  _not_ big loud bangy things. They're big loud  _boomy_  things. You're a pirate, you should know this! Get your stuff together Eizen!"

Velvet intruded in on their conversation. "You know what? I think that's not a bad idea honestly." She grinned darkly. "Some loud noise would likely scare off any nearby daemons and make our search easier. I nominate Magilou for the field test."

"Now, Wait just a second!" Magilou sputtered in indignation.

"Aye." Eizen grunted in assent. "I'd say that's a good idea." He shrugged. "Besides, making Leo's weaponry stronger would benefit all of us in battle."

Magilou yelled, "Don't I get a word in edgewise?!"

Rokurou walked over and joined the rest of the group. "What's going on now?" He asked curiously.

Leo explained, "I'm trying to get Magilou here to test out an experimental round for me by shooting my cannon."

Rokurou blinked. "Oh… Well that sounds awesome! Go for it, Magilou! I'll be rooting for you!"

Magilou hung her head. "Who else would you be rooting for?! The cannon?!"

Eleanor, watching the whole thing from the sidelines asked Leo in a whisper, "Is the bullet that bad?"

Leo grinned. "Absolutely." He whispered back. The man looked down at Laphicet. "Come on kid, you're the last one. Should Magilou test my gun for me?" He asked.  _"Say yes."_ The man whispered out of the corner of his mouth.

"HEY! I HEARD THAT!" Magilou exclaimed. "This vote is rigged! RIGGED I say! I demand a recount!"

Velvet deadpanned. "There's five people voting."

Magilou shook her head. "And there's five Empyreans!"

Velvet blinked. "Wha-? That doesn't help your case at all!"

"Alas! Five is the magic number! Only with five beings, does the world survive through the millennia! Should only four beings concur, the world will turn to dust and the elements will run amock! This is known! So therefore, if only four people agree that I should test the cannon then-!"

"I think Magilou should test the cannon!" Laphicet agreed cheerfully.

Magilou gaped at the kid in betrayal. "…What have I possibly done to deserve this horrific witch trial?!" She cried.

Laphicet shrugged. "Leo promised that it would look  _really cool_. And I didn't have the chance to see it during the battle so…" He gazed pleadingly up at the witch. "Magilou? Can you please shoot Leo's new bullet? Please? It sounds so cool!" The malak was practically bouncing with enthusiasm.

"…" Magilou fell to the ground in dismay. "Witch burners, the lot of you!"

Leo grinned and poked the woman with the butt of his rifle. "Come on! It'll be fun! Bet you 5 gald you complain after shooting it!"

Magilou's eye twitched. "…Argh! Fine! Give me the dratted thing!" She swiped the gun from a grinning Leo and examined it closely. "Huh. Look at that. It's too confusing for me to figure out. Well! I guess we'll just have to call it a bust-!"

Velvet gripped the barrel of the gun harshly. "It's easy." She dismissed. "Look." With practiced hands, she pointed out the parts on the rifle. "Left hand here, right hand there. When you're ready to fire, finger goes here, pushes the safety off and pulls the trigger. Easy."

Magilou glared between Velvet and Leo. "Oh, why did you two have to be so close?!" She grumbled.

Leo grinned. "Alright, Magilou." He pointed at a large tree a small distance away from the group. "Go ahead and just point the gun at that tree over there and fire. I'd make sure the gun is properly seated in your shoulder before you do… just a friendly tip." He grinned slyly. "Remember our bet!" He reminded.

Magilou pouted as she tried her best to shift unfamiliarly with the weapon in her hands. "Witches are made for casting spells, for making potions, and for charming princes. Exactly where in the job description does it say, 'test fire extremely dangerous ordinance?!'"

"Just shoot it already!" Rokurou yelled eagerly.

Laphicet urged, "Come on, Magilou! You can do it!"

Eizen nodded. "Good luck, Magilou."

Velvet gave a scoff. "Yeah, you'll need it."

"Be quiet! I'm going to win my 5 gald, whether you ruffians believe in me or not!" The witch called over her shoulder.

Leo exchanged meaningful looks with everyone in the group. He mouthed silently, "Stand back."

The group all collectively edged away from the witch as she her aim became steadier and steadier on the target.

Evidently confident in her firing stance, Magilou let out a laugh. "Hah! This is going to be easy! Let it be known across the land that the great Magilou backs away from  _no_ challenge!" The safety clicked off. Everyone took another step back and covered their ears. "5 gald, here I come!"

Click.

CA-CRACK!

Everyone gaped as the firearm in Magilou's hand roared, the muzzle flash exploding aggressively into the air and pushing tremendous force back into the unsuspecting witch's shoulder.

"WAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

The witch cried as she was caught utterly off guard and sent tumbling backwards head over heels into the mud and landing with a wet slap. Meanwhile, the rifle catapulted itself over the witch's shoulder in an impressively high arc through the air.

"MISS MAGILOU!" Bienfu cried in shock as the witch collapsed onto the mud, racing from behind to help his charge. Right into the path of a falling metal gun.

SMACK!

"Bieee-?" Squelch.

The Malak faceplanted into the mud, a massive bump rising on his head. Leo's rifle landed happily at his side with a clatter.

Leo blinked as his mind raced to catch up with all the events occurring before his very eyes.

"Uh…" He started. "I…I don't…" He stammered, looking from Bienfu to Magilou, both lying in the mud in obvious pain.

Suddenly, Rokurou burst into hysterical laughter. "Hahaha! That was totally worth it!"

Eizen chuckled himself. "Aye, that was quite the impressive field test."

Velvet smiled wryly. "Don't you mean mud test?" She gestured pointedly at the witch moaning in the mud along with Bienfu.

Laphicet shook his head in wonder. "What are the odds that the cannon would fly at just the right trajectory from Magilou's hands to hit Bienfu mid-flight?!" He asked in awe.

Leo laughed. "Beats me, kid." He had a thought. "I guess it's just the Reaper's Curse at play."

Laphicet laughed. "I guess so! Poor Bienfu."

Magilou plucked her face from the mud sourly. "What about poor Magilou, huh?! Doesn't anyone have any soft caring feelings for one of their dearly loved companions in pain?!" She whined as she got back to her feet, plucking mud off the front of her hat.

Leo raised an eyebrow. "Is that a complaint I hear? Because if so…" He extended a hand meaningfully.

"AHH!" Magilou leapt back from him in shock.

"No! Definitely not! That was…" She winced in clear agony from her bruised right shoulder. "T-That was simply an expression of the lack of group cohesion! What a failure we have been as a team!" She languished dramatically.

Leo nodded sagely. "Well, a bet is a bet. I suppose this 5 gald is yours then." He pulled out a few coins and proffered it to her.

The witch's eyes lit up. She snatched the coins right out of his hands and held them up to her cheeks. "Ahh! My darling 5-gald! How rich are the fruits of my labor! Pleasure doing business with you Leo-darling!" She sang.

Leo shrugged uncaringly. "Funnily, this time I'm actually quite happy about losing a bet to you. Worth it."

"Bien…" The poor normin malak wobbled his way in the mud towards his mistress. "Miss Magilou… are you okay?! You looked like you were in a lot of pain!" The pitiable thing asked.

Magilou's eyes shot between the 5-gald in her hand and Bienfu. "Of course your mistress is fine, Bienfu!" She sang out charmingly. "Silly you, getting worked up over nothing." She twirled around and laid her hands around the back of her neck (with a slight cringe of pain). "Try to be more considerate next time, Bienfu darling. It's rude to disturb a witch when she's working." She grinned slyly.

"BIEEEHEEHEHEEENNN! MISS MAGILOU! YOU'RE SO MEAN!" The malak cried, flying off crookedly.

Eleanor's eye twitched. "Is… usual behavior?" She asked Leo quietly.

Leo nodded knowingly. "How does it feel to be the only normal person here?" He asked.

Eleanor put a hand on her head in exasperation. "It feels like I'm a fish out of water."

Leo grinned. "You get used to it after a while."

"…That's what I'm afraid of."

Leo laughed.

He hoped she would. He really did.

"Alright," Velvet stated firmly, "We've wasted enough time as it is. Let's get back to the search."

* * *

Leo, Hawk, and Eleanor trotted alone through the forest, the group having decided to split up in order to expedite the search. Leo had been the one to suggest it and had sorted out the logistics, leading to the former mentor and student walking together in the rain. The others were all searching in pairs of two and three, malak tethers acting as impromptu communication channels.

"This feels strange, don't you think?" Eleanor broke the companionable silence as the two trotted around, eyes peeled for daemons and purple flowers.

Leo nodded. "I know what you mean." He glanced at Hawk leading the two, sniffing around for any hint of the sweet scent of Sale'toma. "It's just like old times, back when the two of us were patrolling for the Abbey."

Eleanor nodded with a distant look in her eyes. "…I really appreciated your help, back then. Patrolling was always a rather lonesome task."

Leo grinned back. "What, didn't you have Bienfu?"

Eleanor shook her head. "Back then… I couldn't fathom the relationship between you and Hawk. I'd always been taught that malaks were only tools. Bienfu was merely a deviant, in my eyes." She looked off into the distance. "I've… started to realize just how wrong I've been when it comes to malaks. Laphicet… Eizen… even Bienfu. They're all so… unique."

Leo patted her on the back sagely. "Ah, young grasshopper. I'm proud of you. I knew you'd get there eventually."

Eleanor glared at him. "Did you ever think to tell me? Let me know just how naïve I was being when it came to malaks?"

Leo eyed her seriously.

"…What do you think of the Abbey right now, Eleanor?" He asked pointedly.

Eleanor blinked at the change in subject. "I…" She shook her head firmly. "My views of the Abbey haven't changed. While the things the Abbey do are harsh, it is necessary for the survival of the world. I still believe that reason is what we need."

Leo nodded. It was what he had expected. "And there's your answer. Some things you just need to experience for yourself."

Eleanor eyed her former pupil. "I suppose you're still of the disposition that the Abbey's end goal does not justify the means."

Leo nodded. "Yeah. That's why I left, of course." He shook his head dismissively. "Anyways, that's just my opinion." He shrugged. "What you need to do, Eleanor, is to see things for yourself. Do what you think is right. That's all I can really say in that regard."

"…" Eleanor clenched her fists.

Leo watched regretfully as his former master fought with herself.

He knew what she was thinking. Artorius's mission and her inevitable betrayal of the rest of them for the Abbey. He was sure his presence in the group made it that much harder to stomach. Nevertheless, she had always been a strong person. Leo honestly had no idea if Eleanor would ever change her position.

It was up to her at this point.

Suddenly, Hawk started to growl.

"Who are you people?! What are you doing here?!"

Leo cursed and turned to the threat, grabbing his rifle as Eleanor reached for her spear. "Reloading!" He called as he progressively ejected the contents of his rifle, not bothering to pick up the falling bullets, and reached for his coat pocket that contained his rubber bullets.

For they had somehow stumbled upon two exorcists in the middle of the Warg Forest. What the hell were they doing here?!

As he reloaded, Eleanor sprinted forward and clashed with the attacking exorcists and exchanged blows, distracting them. One of them proved a match for her, allowing the other to sprint towards Leo who was still fumbling with rifle rounds.

Hawk stopped the charging exorcist with a fireball arte.

The man shouted in surprise, "What?! A malak?!" In response, the exorcist's own malak appeared; one with the head of a hawk and the body of a human. The malak began its own spell directed at Leo while the exorcist swung his sword at Hawk. Hawk dodged the blade deftly with a taunting growl.

Meanwhile, Eleanor was holding her own against both the exorcist she was fighting and her malak. With a cry, she deftly dodged the exorcist's lunge and in retaliation swept her feet and threw the exorcist off her feet. With precise movements, Eleanor swung the blunt end of her spear into the back of the fallen exorcist's head, knocking her out. The now unconscious exorcist's malak continued to attack Eleanor emotionlessly despite the defeat of its master.

CRACK!

Leo had finally filled and chambered his rifle with four rubber rounds and had fired one at the exorcist whom had been getting a bit too close to Hawk with his swings. The exorcist cried out in shock, clutching his shoulder in agony where the round had struck. Hawk capitalized on the interruption and bit the exorcist viciously on the wrist, causing him to cry out and drop his sword. The two struggled against each other amidst growls and grunts.

Suddenly, Leo remembered the exorcist's malak just in time to recognize the alarming rush of mana underneath him. With an alarmed cry, he lunged to the side into the mud, narrowly dodging the vicious-looking spike of earth that violently erupted from the mud a second later. In the air, Leo twisted around and brought up his rifle while cocking it. He landed roughly onto the mud with a grunt and readjusted his aim at the offending malak.

CRACK!

The rubber bullet caught the malak right in the neck and caused it to recoil in pain. Cocking his rifle, Leo scrambled to his feet and sprinted towards the malak, aiming from the hip.

CRACK!

Another round struck the malak, giving Leo just enough freedom to swing his rifle around like a baseball bat and slam the shoulder butt into the back of the malak's head, causing it to dissipate in its final defense mechanism and return to its master's body, drained of energy.

"Hawk! Crossfire right!"

CRACK!

A master whom, incidentally, had just received another bullet; this time to the ankle. With a cry, the man tumbled to the floor. Hawk leapt deftly onto the fallen exorcist and cast an arte, promptly rendering the man unconscious.

Gasping for breath and shaking with the adrenaline surging through him, Leo glanced over at his partner just in time to see her sharply slamming her spear pole directly into the exorcist malak's back. The malak quickly dissipated into its unconscious master.

The three individuals, panting, took a good long look around for further threats. When none appeared, they finally relaxed.

"…Well," Leo muttered wryly, breaking the silence, "I suppose it's not  _exactly_ like old times, huh?" The man ejected the remaining bullet in his rifle and caught it in the air, returning it to its designated pocket.

"Yes…" Eleanor was clearly deeply uncomfortable with fighting her own comrades, even if it wasn't to kill. "…How things have changed…" She whispered shakily.

Leo trotted over to where he had originally been at the start of the fight and dug around through the mud for the four daemon-killing rounds he had ejected in the beginning. "Honestly," he asked casually as he searched, "I'm amazed that you're doing all of this for the daemon you hate. You said it was for honor… right?"

Eleanor's inner conflict was palatable.

To Leo, it was obvious what his mentor would've done if Artorius hadn't given her the mission. She would've killed herself the moment she got rather than serve the daemon she hated. The only reason she was doing this was because the Abbey had told her to.

But she couldn't admit that, even to her old friend.

"Yes." She whispered, looking away and holding a hand close to her heart. "That's why…" She trailed off uncertainty.

Leo scoffed mentally at the bullshit response. The Abbey  _really_  needed to train her on lying better. Leo examined their surroundings and changed the subject. "Well, I think it's safe to say that these two were guarding something." He pointed to a nearby tent with supplies. "I'm going to signal the others."

Eleanor nodded, clearly relieved at the change of subject.

Leo warned, "Cover your ears." He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a rifle round dyed bright green and slotted it into his empty rifle. Chambering the round, he angled the barrel straight up into the air.

POP!

The low-powered round flew into the air and flashed a brilliant luminescent green. Floating in the light breeze, the flare fell slowly to the ground, ensuring that anyone in a 5-kilometer radius could see it.

Eleanor gazed at the flare in awe, shielding her eyes from the brightness. "Sometimes Leo, I think your ingenuity is too good to be true…" She trailed off.

Leo coughed. "What can I say? I'm just super smart."

Eleanor watched in amusement as Leo changed the subject abruptly as he filled his rifle with four fresh anti-daemon rounds, not looking her in the eye.

"I said green for if we found something of note, and red if we needed reinforcements. They should be over in a few moments."

Eleanor shook her head in exasperation. She muttered, "Always the secretive one."

She turned to the sigil of the Abbey on the tent in the middle of the forest that the two exorcists had been occupying. The rain pattered off the white and blue canvas starkly contrasting the natural hues of the Warg Forest surrounding the tent.

"Still, I wonder why these two were out here in the middle of nowhere? Something isn't right…" She breathed.

"Let's go take a look then." Leo urged, shouldering his rifle.

Together, the two stepped forwards through the mud and into the small tent away from the rain. The inside was standard as expected; usual Abbey fare. Nodding to one another, they ransacked the place systematically, searching both effects and equipment.

"...Bug Cage?" Leo held up a document found in a drawer.

Eleanor took the paper from him and examined it under the candlelight. "…Orders from Legate Melchior… Guard the designated area in the Warg Forest from any intruders…" She blinked in disbelief. "There was no official documentation in this in the Abbey ledgers about missions like these. Yet this paperwork details an apparently top-secret Abbey operation to be kept secret from even other exorcists!"

Footsteps could be heard outside. Leo glanced at Hawk and noted that the malak wasn't alarmed.

"Come in!" He called out.

The rest of the group promptly stepped into the tent. Velvet glanced around in surprise as she entered first. "What is all this?" She asked, her raven hair dripping water onto the canvas floor of the tent.

Leo explained, "We found two exorcists, apparently guarding something top secret for the Abbey." He shrugged. "From what we can tell, the area they were guarding is nearby… but there's nothing here that really explains why exactly they were guarding something so remote and far away from any human settlement."

Eizen took the offered paper from Eleanor and glanced over it. "…Hm." He glanced meaningfully at Eleanor. "And you've never heard of operations such as these in the Abbey?"

The group turned to Eleanor. She shook her head in firm disbelief. "I… had no idea. Such operations technically shouldn't exist." She genuinely seemed confused. "So why do they…?"

"Ah!" Laphicet suddenly yelled out as his compass began to spin erratically. "It's the same feeling I had when we were in the earthpulse!"

Velvet blinked. "Eizen. Do you feel anything?"

The man shook his head. "It would appear that Laphicet is more sensitive than me."

The spinning stopped. "It stopped, but that feeling is still there…" Laphicet trailed off.

Velvet prompted, "Where's the feeling coming from?"

Laphicet pointed in a direction. Rokurou shrugged. "Might as well investigate, right?"

"Why do I get a bad feeling about this?" Leo grumbled to himself as Laphicet and the rest of the group shuffled out of the tent.

Velvet pointed out, "That might be because we have a reaper with us?"

Leo sighed melodramatically. "No… I think you guys don't give yourselves enough credit. Trouble follows you guys like flies on feces, Reaper's Curse or no."

Velvet shrugged. "Come on."

The two followed the rest of the group outside.

Overhead, the rain slowly petered out, leaving tranquility in its wake.


	22. C20 - Taste

**Chapter 20 – Taste.**

"A… Rhinostagros." Leo deadpanned, staring at the bug in question cradled in Laphicet's hands.

"Yeah! Rokurou thought it was a Rhinoceros Beetle, but Eizen thought it was a Stag Beetle. The two of them were so convinced that the other was wrong that they nearly started fighting right on the spot!"

Leo laughed. "I can  _definitely_ see that happening. Some people can get really uptight over bugs…" He shrugged helplessly. "I don't get it myself."

Velvet walked over and gave a shrug. "You and me both."

The three of them were trailing a little way behind the rest of the group as they trudged through the wetlands on the way back to Reneed. They'd found the 'Bug Cage' which had turned out to be a barrier-enclosed patch of Sale'toma Flowers trapping a bug daemon that Laphicet had ended up bringing back. As it turned out, in the end, the mystery hadn't been solved at all.

"Velvet, you just don't get it!" Laphicet warbled impassionate. "Bugs are the best!" He bounced up and down, the massive Rhinostagros in his hand surprisingly okay with the movement. "Thanks again, Velvet!" The kid's goofy grin could melt glaciers.

Leo's thoughts were inevitably drawn back to the aftermath of the battle. A smile found its way onto his face. The sight of the fierce and murderous daemon with a raised monstrous arm giving in to the innocent request of her little "tool" had warmed his heart incomprehensibly.

Good 'ol Velvet.

He grinned. "Who knew the vicious daemon had a soft side for pets?" He poked a growling Velvet with his elbow. "If I find a bug, can I keep it too?"

"You already are one." She retorted, mildly backhanding the man away like a fly. "Besides, you already have a pet."

"You mean Hawk? I guess that's true…" Leo trailed off. "But!" He exclaimed. "One can  _never_ have too many companions!" He declared pompously.

"I beg to differ. I can think of a companion or two I'd be much better off without." Velvet deadpanned, staring pointedly at Leo.

"Hm? Is Magilou standing behind me?" The man asked in mock confusion, looking over his shoulder.

Velvet put a hand on her face. "I'm going to enjoy watching you take your medicine." She let out savagely.

Leo cringed. "Please don't remind me about that. The things I heard about the taste of that stuff in the Abbey…" He shuddered. "They say…" His face went dark. "They say that the taste never quite leaves your mouth, even after decades of service. The only time you will ever stop tasting its foul aftertaste…" His eyes narrowed, and his voice grew dramatic. "…is when you DIE."

Laphicet's eyes were wide. "No way! It's that bad?!" He exclaimed.

"Drama queen." Velvet scoffed.

"Am not!"

"Well, regardless," the therion shrugged, "you'll need to take double the dose, so you and your Abbey buddy can bond over your suffering or whatever."

"Shht." Leo shushed her. "I'm trying not to think about it. I'm  _really_  trying not to think about it."

Velvet scoffed. "You know, it would be easier if you just took it sooner than later."

The man laughed self-deprecatingly. "Actually, it would be easier if I just shot myself instead."

The three fell into a companionable silence as they trotted rhythmically through the mud of the wetlands.

"Zaveid!" The shout cut through the silence and instantly brought the attention of everyone to the front of the group.

"Easy there, bro! I don't have time to spar today! Got a date lined up!" The malak brought up a strange weapon and aimed it at Eizen, halting him in his tracks.

Leo blinked. "Zaveid?" He breathed.

His thoughts whirled back to a few years ago when he had met the malak for the first time. The malak whom had been crucial in convincing him to take the Abbey's teachings with a grain of salt. He blinked again as he registered the weapon the malak was holding, the closest thing the man had seen in this world to resemble a firearm.

The malak absently recognized Leo with surprise. "Huh. It's the exorcist-not-exorcist guy." His eyes ran over Leo's companions. "Hell of a crowd you've chosen to hang out with." He shrugged. "I'd love to chat and catch up, but I've got somewhere to be, I'm afraid."

"…That artifact you've got belongs to Aifread. Why do you have it?" Eizen interjected.

The other man's eyes returned the reaper's gaze. "Just picked if off the ground somewhere." Zaveid grinned knowingly.

Leo's brow furrowed as the two butted heads verbally, one man to another. The hell was going on…?

His eyes widened as Zaveid abruptly raised his weapon to his temple. "What the hell are you-?!" He yelled out in alarm.

WHOOSH!

The malak recoiled in an apparently familiar transfer of energy from the weapon as it injected mana directly from the barrel in a bang.

"…I'd play more, but I don't wanna keep ol' pointy-beard waiting." The man, clearly unharmed by the discharge of the strange weapon, goaded. "We'll chat some more later, with our fists!" With that, the man disappeared in a flash of wind.

"Wait!" Eizen barked as he charged after the residual mana.

Laphicet called out urgently after the man, "Eizen! We need to get the flowers to everyone on the ship!"

"You handle it!" The man shot back as he sprinted off.

Leo blinked as the man's form disappeared into the distant swamp. "…What the hell." He breathed. "He just charged after him." He shook his head in disbelief. "He does know he's obviously leading him on with that pistol of his, right?"

Laphicet looked at him in surprise. "You know what that weapon is?"

"Er-" Leo cringed as he realized his misstep.

Magilou took the opportunity to grin deviously. "I'm sure I'm not the only one who noticed just how similarSeigfreid is to Leo's weapon. The way they both activate with the switch at the bottom, and the way they both have a round barrel where the weapon fires like a tiny cannon." She noted casually, "You know, I'm starting to think that there's a lot more to Leo than he leads us to believe."

"That's right…" Rokurou put a hand under his chin in thought. "Leo, you're always so strange in general... Are you sure you're  _just_ an exorcist?" He met Leo's eyes. "You hiding something from us?" He asked with a curious raised eyebrow.

Leo had a grimace on his face.  _I suppose it was a point that needed to be addressed at some point._  He sighed.

"I uh, am." He admitted.

Magilou blinked. Rokurou's eyebrows rose. Laphicet cocked his head to the side in confusion.

Leo took a breath. "I'll freely admit that I have secrets." He splayed his hands. "I'm hardly a very straightforward individual. Eleanor and Velvet have known me for a long time, so they know this well by now."

Magilou, Rokurou, and Laphicet all glanced at the two women in question, who both shrugged.

Velvet waved a disdainful hand, "It's annoying but you get used to it."

Eleanor nodded, clutching a fist to her chest. "We've just accepted that Leo has a lot of strange things about himself that he just isn't ready to tell us yet." She shrugged. "It's quite simple, really."

Magilou gaped. "So, what, you just let him keep his secrets?! What if they're super important? What if they hold the key to killing Innominat, or the key to beating the Abbey, or the key to bad breath?!"

Leo's eye twitched. "What I know won't help with your oral hygiene, I can tell you that much."

Rokurou eyed the enigma of his companion with open curiosity. "So, what  _do_ you know then? Do we get a hint at least?"

Leo looked contemplative. "Right well, generally speaking, I can tell you this much." He shifted on his feet, meeting the eyes of the three members of the group firmly. "To put it simply, I'm not from around here." He explained.

Rokurou blinked. "Around here?" He gestured around the surrounding wetlands.

"I'm from a place that's not on the map." Leo explained firmly.

"Right," Velvet muttered, "this old explanation."

Leo glanced in her direction and shrugged. "It still works."

Magilou was vividly intrigued by Leo's explanation. "Oh?" She breathed, her imagination clearly working overtime to decipher this brand-new enigma that had presented itself for her entertainment. "Then why can't you explain to us where you're from? How did you get here? When did you get here? Which map are you talking about?"

Leo shook his head. "Can't say. Sorry."

"If you don't mind me asking," Rokurou asked, "why exactly is that?"

Leo shrugged hopelessly. "I… have my reasons why I'm so tight-lipped about my origins..." Abruptly, Hawk appeared in a flash of green and rubbed his muzzle on Leo's leg, whining. The man bent down to absently scratch the only companion he'd freely explained his origins to.

"…I can promise you this though, and you'll just have to take my word for it." He met Rokurou's gaze sincerely. "What I know is not relevant to any of you. It's my past, and mine alone. I keep my secrets because knowing it won't help any of you in your own quests, and because I…" He cringed.

"…I kind of don't want to remind myself of them, to be honest." He let out quietly.

Rokurou blinked, surprised by the man's uncharacteristically heavy statement.

Magilou's eyes were uncharacteristically serious. "So..." She drawled. "Your past is something you keep to yourself because you don't want to remember it." She hummed lightly, swaying her hips absently in thought.

"Would you say that it… haunts you? Perchance?" The witch breathed. "Something you want to forget? Something you want to ignore?"

Leo blinked. And then he nodded. "…Yeah. I guess that's a nice way of putting it." He admitted

Magilou shook her head. "Leo. oh Leo. What a dreadfully misguided approach."

The man met Magilou's unusually dark expression grimly. "Misguided or not, it's what I've chosen to do." He stated firmly.

The witch's expression stayed uncharacteristically hard and calculating, her eyes burrowing into Leo's.

Eleanor spoke up for her friend, breaking the silence. "For the record, Leo's been my student for over two years now. If anyone can vouch for him, it's me, and I do. Whatever secrets he has, whatever his origins, I personally don't care. He's saved my life and I've saved his countless times."

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "An emotional statement coming from an exorcist." She commented dryly.

Eleanor was instantly defensive at the daemon's derisiveness. "Well, it's not just that. Lord Artorius would never let a man he didn't trust to have such a beneficial agreement with the Abbey in the first place."

Velvet hummed. "Fair enough. I suppose only an exorcist would need more than friendship to trust a person."

"…" Eleanor clenched her fist at the snub.

Velvet turned her attention to the rest of the group. "Either way, the point is, Leo likes to be mysterious and exclusive to others. Whether you like it or not, he has his secrets and he won't be telling you. He's never told me, and I've known him the longest."

"Do I detect a hint of bragging in that statement?" Leo prodded wryly.

Velvet scowled. "That's insinuating that I'm even proud of the fact that I'm friend with you."

Leo gave a mock-hurt expression. "But Velvet! You mean to say… that you don't treasure the bonds of love between us? Do you not share my feelings of love and adoration for you?! Say it isn't so!" He cried.

Velvet rolled her eyes. "How the hell did I end up with you again?"

Magilou and Rokurou exchanged glances.

Laphicet abruptly piped up. "It doesn't matter to me, Leo!" He reaffirmed, shaking his head. "What you decided to share with us is your choice, and your own."

Rokurou shrugged. "I suppose there isn't a single person among us who doesn't have his or her own secrets." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Still, what did you call Zaveid's artefact earlier?"

"A pistol." Leo replied. "Where I'm from, guns like mine come in all shapes and sizes." He shook his head. "But… none of them fire anything remotely like the pure mana that that pistol fired." Leo shrugged. "I honestly have no idea how that thing came to be. It's as foreign to me as it is to you. All I can tell you is that it looks like a type of gun from where I'm from."

"So," Velvet summarized, "you have utterly no clue where it came from and how it came to be."

Leo nodded. "Yeah. Really something, too. Never thought I'd see someone shoot himself so casually."

Eleanor shuddered. "People do that where you come from?"

Leo shook his head. "I'm done talking about the past. I've said more than I'm comfortable with already." He sighed in resignation.

He turned frank. "I know me having secrets makes me harder to trust... I can only ask that you forgive me in that respect."

Magilou raised her hands in a defeated shrug. "Fine. I suppose it makes everything more interesting in the end. It makes no difference to me where you came from, in the end." She gave Leo a disturbing predator's glare. "…Mark my words though, I  _will_ wring the secrets out of you. Every. Last. Drop." Her grin was fanged.

Leo blinked. "R-right. Good luck with that, Magilou."

The witch cackled. "Bet you 300 gald I get all the secrets out of you within a year!"

The man grunted, easily warming up to the idea. "Easiest money I'll ever make." He waved an uncaring hand.

Velvet and Eleanor both shook their heads in disbelief. "…He's just so strange," Eleanor muttered, "even after all this time."

"Well," Velvet observed dryly, "he fits in just fine with the rest of the weirdos around here just fine."

Eleanor shook her head in resignation. "I suppose you're not wrong."

The two mortal enemies shared a brief, rare smile in mutual exasperation at the man they called a friend.

* * *

Agony. Pure agony.

Everything was pain.

Oh gods.

It BURNED EVERYTHING.

EVERYTHING WAS PAIN.

Velvet, Laphicet, Rokurou, and Magilou all simply watched as Eleanor and Leo both suffered in utter agony, writhing on the docks by the Van Eltia.

"Velvet. My old friend.  _Please…_ " Leo wheezed caustically, laboriously reaching up and tugging at Velvet's coat from his position on the ground. "Put me out of my misery _. Kill me… End my suffering!_ " He hissed.

Velvet blinked as the man continued to plead up at her from the ground. "It can't be  _that_ bad, can it?" She asked in disbelief.

"If you're going to die," Magilou goaded, "could you at least tell us your secrets before you kick the bucket? Give me my 300 gald?"

"Screw… yourself…" Leo breathed sourly. "I'll take my secrets… to the grave…"

Eleanor winced as she shakily got up from her kneeling position on the ground. "O-oh gods… It's just as bad as I remembered." She cringed. "To think that Leo had to take double the dose!"

Rokurou steadied Eleanor's wobbling form with a firm hand on the shoulder. "Easy there." He let go of the woman promptly after she had found her balance. "That is one drink I will never ever want to try, no matter how much alcohol you give me first." He commented.

Laphicet kneeled next to Hawk in front of Leo's suffering form. "Come on Leo! You can do this!" He urged.

Hawk also whined in sympathy, giving his master encouraging nudges.

"I regret everything." He spit over the edge of the dock trying in vain to get the taste out of his mouth. "Oh gods. Why?" He moaned.

The taste would never truly leave his mouth.

* * *

"What are you doing?!" Eleanor screamed as Melchior conjured up a sphere of dark energy and sent it at the back of his own malak, eliciting a horrifying scream.

The group had reunited with Eizen and followed Zaveid through the Burnack Plateau to Lothringen Tower, where the Abbey had set up an obvious trap to lure the malak in search of Aifread. Melchior had shown himself after the group had failed to fall for his illusions, and Zaveid had shot one of Melchior's double illusions with Seigfreid, causing the malak to apparently regain free will.

Leading to the legate attacking his own malak.

The screaming cracked and warped, the infected malak exploding in dark energy as it turned into a Wyvern daemon, much to Eleanor's horror.

"He turned her into a daemon!" Velvet observed with wide eyes.

"This... this can't be happening!" Eleanor muttered in denial.

Without warning, the daemonblight abruptly spread. Melchior's other two malaks simultaneously also erupted in screams of pain, transforming into Wyverns.

The legate himself teleported to the entrance of the courtyard, noting absently, "A chain reaction… Your 'Reaper's Curse' is quite the dreadful affliction, isn't it?" Melchior walked off, seemingly uncaring of the impending conflict behind him. Zaveid charged after him fiercely.

"Leo!" Velvet called out sharply, snapping the man's attention back to the matter at hand. "Get back in formation!" The rest of the group all took out their respective weapons, preparing to battle the circling wyverns.

"Right! On my way!" Leo grabbed his rifle and ejected all the bullets in the magazine tube as he ran towards the group from his position near Eizen. Rubber bullets wouldn't help here.

A fierce cry came from a wyvern as it dove straight for him, talons extended. "Damn!" Leo dove to the side and landed roughly onto the hard floor of the courtyard, rolling roughly as the fearsome beast flew overhead, wafting him with a fierce gale.

The battle began in earnest all around him as the rest of the group caught up with him and formed a circle around him, battling of the swooping wyverns with whatever means they could manage.

"Are you alright?" Eleanor offered a hand to Leo while keeping her eyes on the circling daemons.

"Never better." Leo grunted, thankfully taking the woman's hand and pulling himself to his feet, readjusting his rifle in his other hand.

Rokurou groaned. "These guys are going to be a royal pain the neck. Swords aren't much good against opponents that fly so high."

Velvet growled in frustration, having swiped her sword at a swooping daemon only to be thrown off-balance by the crosswind. "Irritating, to say the least!" She spat.

Leo hesitated. And then the man committed to slotting in strange-looking rounds into his empty rifle. "Don't worry, guys. I've got an ace up my sleeve that I've been looking forward to testing out for a while now." He gave a feral grin.

Magilou winced. "Somehow I'm not exactly overflowing with reassurance right about now." She muttered, massaging her right shoulder instinctively.

Eizen threw a meaningful glance his way. "Should we be worried?"

Leo waved a dismissive hand. "Nah, not these guys. The only guys who should be worrying…" He aimed at one of the circling wyverns. "…is them! Hawk!" The pup appeared with a yip. "You know what to do."

Hawk growled fiercely, a brilliant white casting circle materializing at his feet. Leo bit his lips in concentration and slipped his finger through the trigger guard, tracking the wyvern's orbit. His lips pulled into a devious smile.

"DAWNBREAKER!" He roared.

Click.

BOOM!

Everyone flinched as a roar several times louder than what his regular rounds sounded like exploded out of the rifle barrel, the fireball of the muzzle flare brilliantly illuminated in a giant plume of raging hot fire as the projectile burst forward with shockingly high velocity towards the wyvern, all the while trailing a brilliant tail of molten mana like a comet.

BANG!

An explosion followed as the explosive round impacted on the wyvern's stomach and detonated violently. Upon impact, all the trailing mana following the round also landed at the impact zone with momentary delay, splashing in a radius around the entry wound of the bullet and igniting the flames wherever the red-hot energy touched.

In one fell swoop, the daemon had been completely and utterly wreathed in flame. The torched wyvern screeched in agony, diving down as fast as possible in an attempt to put out the flames.

Leo laughed hysterically at the sight. "Holy crap! That was fucking awesome Hawk!" He cried.

Velvet stared in amazement. "Damn." She breathed.

Laphicet winced, rubbing his ears. Eleanor shook her head in exasperation at her pupil's overly enthusiastic laughter. Rokurou, Magilou, and Eizen all stared at the spectacle, lost for words.

The burning wyvern crashed onto the tile hard in a crumpled heap, struggling to get back onto its talons.

Leo glanced sharply around at his frozen teammates. "Well?" He prompted pointedly. "What are you all waiting for?! At it!" He punctuated his order by cocking his rifle, snapping the rest of them back into action.

The other wyverns, momentarily shocked by the display, restarted their assault with renewed vigor.

As both sides restarted the conflict anew, Leo glanced down at his malak. "Nice fucking job, Hawk."

With concern, he noticed the happy wolf was wavering on his feet. "…Come on." He urged softly. "You're done for now. Thanks pup." He waved his fingers, indicating that Hawk should go back inside and rest. With a grateful nod, an exhausted Hawk returned back inside the man.

Leo sighed in dismay. "Damnit." He cursed. "That might've been too much power for him to handle. I guess I shouldn't do that again until he gets stronger…" Shaking the thoughts from his mind, he turned back to the battle, raising his weapon.

The grounded wyvern was now battling Velvet and Rokurou, harrying it with close-range attacks and preventing it from taking flight again. Magilou and Eizen were casting artes, attacking one of the circling wyverns that was hard-pressed to dodge the midair attacks. And the other one…

"Leo!" Laphicet's warning call drew his attention. He yelped, dodging the sharp talons hurtling at his face with a panicked duck.

"Jesus!" He cried, automatically snapping his rifle back up at the offending wyvern pulling up from the missed dive.

CRACK!

BANG!

A much tamer but still explosive round fired out of his weapon, lacking the arte infusion from Hawk. The bullet exploded on the wyvern's tail, eliciting a cry from the daemon as it faltered in the air.

"Just what are those bullets?!" Eleanor called out, dodging a wyvern's dive with a skilled roll and just barely managing to scrape the head of her spear along the wyvern's flank as it went overhead.

Leo grinned as the wyvern's cry of pain resounded off the walls. "Remember those rocks I mined back in Islegand that nobody was interested in?!" He cocked the lever on his rifle, the shell popping out happily. "Well, I bet you're all interested in them now!" He raised his rifle again.

CRACK!

BANG!

Leo's blood went cold when the wyvern he was targeting suddenly banked to the left. The round missed, landing on the interior wall of the tower and exploding. The massive explosion cratered the wall and caused dangerously heavy stones to rain down towards the courtyard below.

"Damnit!" He yelled in alarm. "Everyone look the hell out!"

Laphicet instantly abandoned the arte he had been casting and brought his hands up in a barrier spell just in time. The created shield formed around all the group members right as the boulders fell to the earth, crashing hard and denting the stone floor around them. A stray stone struck one of the circling wyverns, grounding it with a cry of agony.

Leo sheepishly cocked the rifle twice, caught the remaining explosive bullet, and put it away in his pocket like a child caught with his hands in a cookie jar. "Er, Whoops." He winced. "Probably should've realized it was a bad idea to fire these indoors. Thanks, Laphicet!" He yelled sheepishly.

"Leo! I'm going to kill you!" Velvet yelled angrily as she sliced at the fallen wyvern.

Leo cringed. "Sorry! Stopping now!" He promised, loading regular bullets into his rifle instead.

With only one wyvern in the air and the rest being promptly attacked by Velvet, Eleanor, Rokurou, and Eizen, the group made quick work of the weakened daemons.

With a final thud, the last wyvern smacked headfirst into the interior wall after being hit by a particularly vicious arte courtesy of Magilou. With a low cry, the daemon crashed onto the floor, writhing in pain.

"I've got this one! Get the other two!" Velvet ordered as she slammed her claw into one of the three unconscious wyverns and devoured it.

On the other side of the courtyard, Eizen smashed his fist right onto the head of the other downed wyvern, killing it with pure blunt force trauma.

Leo raised his rifle and fired at the last wyvern, aiming to kill with a shot straight to the brain. Suddenly, a gust of unnatural wind forced the rifle round off course, ineffectively striking the stone to the side of the wyvern's head. Shocked, Leo watched as Zaveid abandoned a tied-up Melchior to get between Velvet and the wyvern.

"What's wrong with you people?! Do you just kill without reason?! Without thought?!" He yelled as he drove Velvet off, giving him just enough room to whip around and fire Seigfreid at the wyvern. The wyvern instantly revived with the injected mana and retreated, flying up and out of the tower.

Zaveid glared at the group.

Suddenly, Melchior appeared behind him and cast an arte in a flash of green light and disappeared.

"My work here is done." The legate said simply as he reappeared by the entryway to the courtyard before disappearing into thin air.

"W-what the hell did you do?!" Zaveid growled, charging after the man. "Get back here!"

"After them!" Velvet ordered sharply, charging after the man.

What the hell did Melchior just do? Leo stared in disbelief as the rest of the group quickly ran out of the battlefield. What was that arte?

Why did he have such an ominous feeling about this? He took a brief glance around him, his smoking rifle still held in his hands. He sighed.

Nothing was ever as simple as it seemed.

Shaking his head, the man cocked his rifle and sped off after the rest of his group, the spent shell clinking softly onto the marred stone pavement below. Silence fell once more in the marred timeless courtyard as the man's steps faded away.


	23. C21 - Pirate

**Chapter 21 – Pirate.**

CLANG!

"Your swings are too unbalanced!"

CLANG!

"Your moves are too predictable!"

CLANG!

"If I was fighting you for real, I would've killed you a hundred times by now!"

CLANG!

Leo grunted as his sword was once again met with resistance in its way to attack his new teacher Velvet. With a scoff, said teacher swing her sword hard, throwing off the locked sword. Leo crashed onto the ground with an involuntary grunt. Before the man could stand up, he felt a sword point tuck under his chin. His eyes rose to meet Velvet's.

"And your balance is horrible." Velvet finished, sheathing her blade and extending her empty hand to Leo. "I'd say we're done for today. Keep moving through those practice swings and forms. We need your fundamentals to be stronger if we're to get anywhere with the more complicated material."

Leo caught his breath and grinned sheepishly as he accepted the hand, pulling himself up. "Geez, Velvet. You weren't kidding when you said this training would be hard, were you?" He muttered, pulling out his flask and gulping water down aggressively.

"Tch." Velvet raised a finger and lowered the angle of Leo's flask. "Slow down." She berated. "Don't choke yourself to death on your first lesson."

Her expression softened. "And you did fine." She conceded. "Eleanor did a decent job of teaching you what she could."

Leo raised an eyebrow, recapping his flask. "Are you… complementing Eleanor?" He raised a hand to his head. "I must've been knocked unconscious somewhere and this is all a dream…"

Velvet shrugged. "Credit where credit is due." She looked away in contemplation. "Still, you've got a long way to go still."

Leo nodded. "I'll try my best." He promised honestly. "I've never been that big of a fan of the whole sharp pointy thing, but I've been using my gauntlet blade way too much to let the lack of training be ignored." He grinned. "Thanks again for training me, Velvet."

Velvet looked over wryly in his direction. "It's just to help myself, naturally." She pointed out. "I would prefer to have none of my group members be liabilities in battle. Don't get any ideas about it somehow coming out of the goodness of my heart or anything like that."

Leo shrugged his coat on from its place on a crate nearby. "Yeah, yeah. You're a selfish daemon, I get the point." He waved her off.

Velvet breathed a laugh. "Well, at least you get that much."

Leo grinned. "Come on. I wanna stop by the store on the way back to the ship."

Velvet nodded. The two of them gathered up the rest of their materials and left their impromptu training area, an alleyway in Reneed. The group had unanimously decided to spend a few hours in town before heading back to the Van Eltia. Velvet and Leo had gone off to train while everyone else had scattered about doing whatever they had fancied. Resting was important, naturally, even for a group of daemons, humans, and malakhim. Especially after all the fighting this day had brought.

The two trotted up to the Reneed general merchant and blacksmith. Given the time of day, it was typically busy with villagers all coming and going, gathering the last few necessities before the store closed for the day.

Leo abruptly noticed a familiar shade of purple by the blacksmith. "Why am I not surprised to see you here, Rokurou?" he greeted as he and Velvet arrived at the storefront.

Rokurou turned around in surprise, a sword in hand. "Oh, hey you guys!" He absently swung the short sword in his hand in the air with the familiarity of a master. "They've got some pretty sweet equipment here. I guess being a frontier town means they need really good swords to fend off wildlife."

Leo looked over the sword in Rokurou's hand with raised eyebrows. "No kidding… they must've used calcite…"

Suddenly he glanced over at Velvet. "Hey Velvet! You need a new sword?"

The therion blinked. "Not particularly. This one does me just fine."

Leo shook his head and waved her over as he made his way up to the blacksmith. "You got any swords fit for a gauntlet?" He showed the man his weapon.

"Huh. Yeah, I've got a few." The man gruffly replied, disappearing inside to fetch some blades.

Velvet asked, "And what is the point of all of this?" She asked.

Leo shushed her. "Shht. You'll see."

Slightly annoyed, Velvet bided her time by buying some gels and other medicinal equipment from the general merchant.

"Here ya' go. Not a lot of people 'round these parts use those gauntlets, but I keep them around just in case their blades break. I can tell you guys aren't from around here." The blacksmith returned with a few blades in protective sheaths, laying them out on the table outside.

Rokurou laughed. "I wonder what gave you that impression."

Leo shook his head as he perused the blades with a sharp eye. "If there was ever a group of people that stuck out like a sore thumb… it would be us."

Velvet walked over from the general merchant, curiously taking in the blades laid on the table.

"May I?" Leo asked the blacksmith, gesturing to his gauntlet.

The man waved his hand dismissively. "Try 'em. Like I said, I don't sell 'em very often anyways."

Leo nodded and disassembled his gauntlet blade carefully and precisely, laying his own serrated blade on the table and replacing it with one of the bronze calcite blades. With a few snaps and firm pushes to ensure the contraption was sealed, Leo strapped the weapon back onto his wrist and extended the blade. He turned to Velvet and showed the blade to her. "Check it out."

Velvet looked over the sword in interest. "While it looks interesting, why should I completely change my sword?" She extended her own amber-based sword and compared it to the other man's blade side-by-side. "It hasn't been giving me any trouble in battle."

"See here." Leo pointed out. "There're tiny scratches in the metal from overuse. Naturally, these aren't of any concern for the immediate future, but eventually they'll degrade the consistency and foundation of the metal, making it more likely to lose its edge and dull faster." He showed her the brand-new calcite blade. "Furthermore, our swords are made of amber while these are calcite, a much denser and flexible material."

The blacksmith nodded, impressed. "That's right, son. Although, that does mean it'll cost more, too."

Rokurou agreed sagely, "You get what you pay for, after all."

"That's not all." Leo added. "Laphicet's been reading up and teaching me about the whole weapon upgrading thing. For example, if you take some molten calcite and you add a thin layer over the edge of the sword, the blade's edge will become more acute and sharp, allowing for deeper cuts. It's a very precise and tedious process, so the stronger the metal, the better the result."

He sheathed the new blade and took the blade out. He looked up to the blacksmith. "And that's why I'm buying us two brand new calcite blades today, sir."

The blacksmith chuckled. "You've got yourself a deal. 2,380 gald. Each."

Leo winced.

Velvet scowled. "You're not spending group money on that." She put her foot down.

"But Velvet!" Leo whined. "The better my blade is at dealing damage, the less you have to worry about training me!"

Velvet's eyebrows rose at that logic. "What? That doesn't even make sense!" Suddenly she realized what was going on. Her eyes narrowed. "…This all because you just want to skimp out on training, don't you?" She accused.

Rokurou let out a bark of laughter. "Busted." He observed.

Leo winced. "Well… I can't fully deny that but…"

The blacksmith grinned. "Yer not getting off that easily. No matter how good your equipment, the  _only_ way to be a good fighter is through good old-fashioned gritty training."

Leo glared sourly at the blacksmith's intrusion. "Just shut up and get me my swords."

The blacksmith laughed at the man's spunk. "Aye, aye, sir." He went back inside to go sharpen the blades.

Velvet sighed in exasperation. "I'll let you buy the swords, but you're not getting off training that easily. I said I'd train you and I will, sharp swords or not."

Leo pouted. "Damnit."

"You really know your swords, Leo." Rokurou noted. "Normally I'd be the one lecturing her about enchanting and whatnot."

The man shrugged. "It's my nature to try my best to make my equipment as good as possible. That's how I survive in this harsh world."

"So," Velvet summarized, "you try as hard as you can to be as lazy as you can in battle, is that it?"

Leo glared at her. "It's not like I'm chopped liver or anything like that, you know! I do my part in fights!"

"But most of the time we have to save your ass from one thing or another at least once a fight." Velvet pointed out.

"Well... not  _most_ of the time…" Leo trailed off uncertainty.

Rokurou looked deep in thought. "Now that you mention it Velvet… you're right!" He laughed incredulously. "I can't think of a single battle where Leo hadn't needed saving one way or another."

Velvet let out an evil smile. "That reminds me of that first battle by the Danann Highway. That was a really sad excuse for a fight too. Turns out he had to be saved by his enemy in the end."

Rokurou laughed. "Haha! That's right! He didn't stand a chance against you!"

"Oh, for the-! You guys are mean, you know that?!" Leo muttered sourly.

Velvet put a hand on her hip. "Just goes to show how weak you really are."

"…Next time you want fire support, I'm gonna to pretend I'm deaf." Leo growled.

Velvet's eyes narrowed. "Next time you pretend to be deaf I'll  _make_ you deaf."

Leo grinned vindictively. "What, with your banshee screaming?"

Velvet's face darkened. "No, when I tear your ears out from the sides of your head and  _eat_  them."

Leo gulped.

"Er, am I intruding on something?" The blacksmith returned, looking hesitantly between the extremely intimidating woman and the cowering man.

Velvet replied noncommittally, "Not at all. Thank you for the blades." She took the wrapped swords from the man's arms and walked off, calling over her shoulder, "My student here can pay for them."

"Wait! Hold on!" Leo stuttered. "I'm buying a new blade for you too!"

Velvet shrugged uncaringly. "Think of it as a teaching fee. I'm going to go check up on the others at the inn. Come on, Rokurou."

Leo sighed in exasperation as the two walked off, leaving him to foot the bill.

"Tough teacher, eh?" The blacksmith asked. "She seems like the scary type."

Leo remarked dryly, "Oh man you have  _no idea_ …" He regrettably reached for his ever-dwindling personal stash of gald.

* * *

"Videl, can you actually read Meliodasian script?"

"I've been wanting to travel the world and see all sorts of ancient ruins, so I've been reading up on pre-Era of Darkness languages, so I can be ready for anything."

"The 'Era of Darkness?' You're referring to the Dark Period, right?"

"Yeah! Almost no written records survived that period, but when you look at the material before and after the era, it's clear that something big happened back then!"

"That's awesome!"

"I know right?!"

Leo nudged Velvet. "Do you have any idea what those two are talking about?" He asked with a smile.

Velvet's expression was soft as she watched Laphicet and a local resident Reneed chat non-stop about various historical periods and theories posed by intellectuals over the years. "I'm completely lost." She replied with a genuine smile.

"Reminds you of Laphi... Doesn't he?" Leo's expression turned bittersweet.

Velvet clenched her fists, her ever-present grudge always there. "…Yeah…" She whispered fiercely.

Eleanor watched Velvet closely with a conflicted expression but said nothing.

The rest of the group had reunited nearby and had found Laphicet amicably chatting with a local resident called Videl, a kid Laphicet's age who had apparently lost a book written in Meliodasian Script. It was… astonishing how much jargon was currently spilling out of their mouths.

Magilou hung her head with a grin. "If this goes on, I don't think I'll be able to call myself a being worthy of this world. I feel dumb just watching these two!"

Eizen chuckled softly. "Don't be. Even I'm struggling to follow the ancient terminology."

Magilou glanced slyly in his direction. "Oh yes. I forget you're the linchpin of ancient knowledge, Mr. I-have-a-coin-from-Kharlan-made-of-hardened-gold."

Eizen glared at her.

"Ah! The Reaper's glare falls upon another victim! I repent!" Magilou mock cried.

Rokurou took the time out to stretch and yawn, settling down on a nearby bench. "It's been a long day. Let the kid socialize. We've still got a bit until sundown."

Velvet, for once, didn't seem against the idea of wasting time. "That might not be a bad idea." She let out. "Let's stay here for a bit before heading to the ship."

Leo smiled knowingly behind her back.

"Videl, where do you think you'll travel first?" Laphicet asked excitedly.

"To be honest? I have no idea." Videl shrugged, book held tightly in one arm.

Laphicet pulled out his world map that he always carried in his pouch. "Well? Where do you think? Northgand is cold and frozen, but the snow looks gorgeous. Midgand is just like Westgand in temperature gradients, but its weather has less precipitation on average. Islegand is surrounded by ocean and is a small continent, but it's got many mountains and ravines. haven't been anywhere else yet, but I plan on traveling more!"

Videl's eyes were wide. "Wow, Laphicet! You've gone so many different places! I'm envious…" He shook his head. "I don't know where I'd even start! Any of these continents are known to hold ruins dating back to even before the Era of Darkness."

Leo decided to add some input. "Excuse me, Videl?" He walked over and kneeled down next to the two boys. "I'm Laphicet's friend, Leo." He introduced himself. "If I may, I suggest that you plan on going to Eastgand first."

"Nice to meet you Leo!" Videl's eyebrows rose curiously. "But why Eastgand? What ruins are out there?"

"Out in the wilds of Eastgand," Leo explained, "there's a lake surrounded by calm forests called Lake Perniya. Its location is remote in the wilderness, but the climate is fair and the terrain not too rugged for expeditions. The closest town to the lake would be Aball to the east." He pointed on Laphicet's map for reference. "What I think you should know is that I've heard rumors that the lake itself contains the ancient capital of the Holy Kingdom of Hyland."

If Videl's eyes grew any bigger they'd pop out. "Oh! I've heard of this!" The kid gasped excitedly. "The Holy Kingdom of Hyland said to be an ancient civilization that was in power well before the beginning of the Era of Darkness!" He sucked in a breath. "This is the first time I've heard of Lake Perniya though. You said the city is  _contained_ in the lake?!"

Leo nodded enthusiastically. "Somehow the city was submerged underneath a good layer of water over the ages. Imagine that! A whole ancient city, untouched by anything but nature!"

"An underwater ancient city!" Videl muttered in awe.

"But Leo?" Laphicet asked. "Wouldn't that mean that there would be no way to explore the ruins if they're all underwater?"

Leo nodded. "That would be the case, but!" He paused dramatically. "I met this one guy in Taliesin who was deeply convinced he had a working plan to drain the lake using the ancient waterways to reveal the city. The city was originally built on top of the lake and had immense underground waterways to drain the lake around it, which is a closed lake. All you would need to do would be to use some diving bells to find the valves underwater to activate the aqueducts, and then whole city will reveal itself just like that!" He snapped his fingers. "Ready to be explored." He finished dramatically.

"Wow!" Both Laphicet and Videl exclaimed.

"That's crazy awesome! I'll definitely plan to do that then!" Videl bounced in place.

Laphicet nodded. "Although maybe not at first. That sounds like something you'd best save for last, to leave a good taste in your mouth after the end of your adventure."

Videl grinned. "I like the way you think, Laphicet! So, where's a nice tame place to explore first?"

Leo began, "Well, we were in Islegand a week ago, and we came across something I think you'll like very much in the Brigid Ravine…"

"Oh yeah!" Laphicet bounced up and down. "I think you'll definitely like what we found there!"

Velvet sighed in fond exasperation as she watched the three chat away, utterly oblivious to the world around them.

"They're in their own little world, aren't they?" Eleanor remarked with a smile.

Velvet shook her head with a smile. "Now there's three of them. What have I done to deserve this…" She groaned with mock anguish.

Eleanor laughed.

* * *

The wind blew fiercely on Leo's face as he stood at the prow of the ship, staring out in the open ocean.

Finally, after being sick as a dog or worried sick over his friends, Leo had a chance to truly enjoy the novelty of travelling on the Van Eltia. The pirate ship had left Port Reneed an hour ago and the land had already disappeared behind them. Now, there was nothing but open ocean surrounding the vessel as far as the eye could see.

"Well, hey there, mysterious traveler." Leo turned to see Magilou casually strolling up to him.

He noted dryly, "Really want your 300 gald, huh?"

The witch made a face. "What?! I have no idea what you're talking about! I'm merely here to enjoy the nice sea breeze on my face and savor the joy of freedom! I was imprisoned for three years, you know! Freedom like this has to be enjoyed."

"Uhuh." Leo shrugged and turned back to the ocean. Magilou casually leaned forward on the rails next to him.

The silence fell comfortably as the two of them watched the ocean and the skies.

"You know… It's not healthy to hide from yourself."

Leo glanced at her in surprise.

She wasn't looking at him. "If you're keeping secrets just so you don't have to face them, you're just trying to hide a part of you from yourself." She met his eyes seriously. "…I don't recommend that."

"Somehow…" Leo's brow furrowed. "I get the feeling you're speaking from personal experience."

"Who knows?" Magilou shrugged vaguely, turning away.

She gestured broadly towards the horizon. "The human mind is made up of countless things. Wants, needs, doubts, fears. If you cut off the parts of you that you hate or fear the most, you're not allowing yourself to truly live."

She drummed her fingers on the railing. "It might not be today, it might not be tomorrow, but one of these days, you'll find yourself feeling empty."

"That emptiness is not something you want. Believe me." She promised.

The silence returned as Leo processed her words.

He found his voice. "…Thanks, Magilou. I'll keep that in mind as I go." He promised.

The witch abruptly sprang away from the railing and twirled at him. "So! Ready to spill? I can hear those 300 gald coins rattling away whenever you walk!"

Leo tried to manage the whiplash after Magilou's abrupt change in tone. "U-uh, I suggest you try again tomorrow." He waved her off.

"Oh poo!" Magilou pouted. "Well! I'll just have to keep bugging you until you break from sheer annoyance!" With that, she trotted off, leaving Leo alone to contemplate her uncharacteristically serious words.

 _Emptiness… huh?_  Leo thought, his lips curling in distaste.

* * *

The sun was setting when Leo stepped out into the open deck once more for a breath of fresh air. His cabin had been getting stuffy and he'd already finished taking notes about the various bullets he'd field tested that day, so he'd gone above deck to watch the sunset.

He took a look around deck. The daemon Kurogane was arguing intensively with the daemon Dyle over the merits of something or another. The sailor Benwick was tending to his little hair-nest of Sylphjays with a mirror, amusingly enough. A few pirates wandered around here and there, sedately maintaining the ship and cleaning the deck.

It was a calm scene, to be sure.

These pirates… Leo really did feel at home with this strange bunch. There was nothing quite like it. He smiled fondly as he wandered aimlessly around the deck, careful not to get in anyone's way.

It was a shame that this was all just a fleeting dream, in the end. Leo's thoughts darkened as he trotted along. It was like a sunset. A quick burst of happiness and beauty quickly snuffed out by the inevitable.

He sighed softly, a soft sea breeze sending a chill down his spine.

Abruptly, his eyes caught sight of a of red and black figure perched on the railing with a foot dangling off the ship, staring out towards the sunset. Leo's eyes grew hard. He had no right to be wallowing in self-pity when she was around.

His demons were nothing compared to hers.

"You know, if you brood to hard, your brain might explode." Leo let out, climbing up to the upper deck where Velvet contemplated the sunset.

Velvet gave a scoff, not looking at the man. "You're one to talk." She shot back.

Leo gave a self-deprecating grin. "That's why I have you here to distract me." He leaned on the railing that Velvet was perched on. The two fell into a comfortable silence, listening to the canvas flapping in the wind and the sea waves meeting the ship hull.

"…It all seems so long ago." Leo admitted softly, breaking the silence. "Laphi was so cheerful and adventurous, back then." He sighed. "Videl reminds me of him a lot."

"He does." Velvet nodded quietly. "When he said he wanted to travel the world, for a second I… thought Laphi had come back from the dead."

Leo pulled out a rifle round from inside his jacket and played with it in his hands over the railing. "…Remember that time when we were charting our own adventure across the world?"

The man could barely discern a smile raising unbidden on Velvet's face behind the raven hair flowing in the wind. "You idiots just couldn't stop talking about it for a week." She scoffed lightly. "Drove me up a wall."

Leo tossed the bullet in the air absently and caught it with a grin. "I still remember what we ended up choosing for our sea route. We'd go from Taliesin to Hellawes to Reneed to Port Cadnix. After that we'd sail to Yesult and then to Port Zekson and then finally back to Taliesin."

"You guys decided to keep Northgand in the route, huh?" Velvet let out softly.

Leo blinked in surprise. "Oh, so you remembered what we were talking about! I thought you'd just tune us out whenever we started rambling on about it."

Velvet shook her head. "No. I can't say I ever understood it." Her eyes were distant "But at the very least, I listened closely just to hear my Laphi's excited puppy voice."

Leo grinned. "A puppy is just what that kid was." He agreed. "And yes, we did decide to keep Northgand in the route, but we also came up with a backup route if the northern oceans became impassable due to global cooling." He thought carefully. "If I remember right… it was Taliesin… Yesult, Cadnix, Reneed, Zekson and finally Taliesin."

Velvet looked out at the ocean soberly. "To think back then… all those names were just abstract concepts of far-off places I'd never go to." Her fists curled. "And now… I'm travelling the world. And…" Her voice shook slightly in hatred. "…My brother will never be able to."

Leo was silent for a bit. The sun continued to set in the distant.

Quietly, the man breathed a few simple words. "'Travel the world for him.'"

"Huh?" Velvet blinked and looked at Leo.

"It's what you told me when we first went hunting together, remember?" Leo met her gaze and gave her a nostalgic smile. "You told me to keep saving money for myself and to explore the world for him. And then one day, I'd come back and tell him all about it."

"And then maybe he'd get better that way…" Velvet finished softly, the memories flooding back.

Leo sighed morosely. "And now the kid's gone… I'm afraid we can't do any of the telling part. But…" He met the older Crowe's gaze determinedly. "We  _can_ at the very least explore for his memory."

Velvet looked away, towards the nearly-hidden sun sinking below the horizon. "For him… huh?" She whispered.

Leo suddenly burst out laughing. "Hey, do you remember how the two of us ended up hunting that early in the morning?"

Velvet nodded. "We both had bad dreams and both of us had the same dumb idea to go hunting for prickleboar before the sun had even come up." She let out a scoff. "I remember a certain someone stepping right into the lake because of how dark it was and swearing up a storm."

Leo cringed at the memory. "Ugh. My boot wasn't dry for a week afterwards. That was completely awful."

"There you go again, complaining as always." Velvet noted with a certain degree of fondness.

She abruptly stilled.

"…Who would've thought things would all end up like this…" She muttered in disbelief, reflection uncharacteristically seeping into her expression.

Leo shook his head wordlessly. Not him. That was for sure.

The two stayed there together as the sun set and darkness spilled over the sea. Companionably silent.

"…Hey Leo?" Velvet broke the silence.

"Hm?"

She let out genuinely, "Thanks for the sword." She gestured at her gauntlet. "If you want, I can pay you back for it."

Leo shook his head with a smile, waving his hand. "Nah. Training fee, right? If not that, then you can consider it a gift."

Velvet smiled, despite herself. "Well, I appreciate it."

"Don't get too used to it. I am a complaining cheapskate, after all."

Velvet shook her head in exasperation. "You never did pay Drake for your time at his inn, did you?"

"Hey!" Leo took offense at the accusation. "I'll have you know that I fixed his grandfather clock andgave him regular packages of prickleboar meat for his ravenous wife, free of charge! Not to mention that I frequently helped around the inn, like taking over reception and fixing holes in the walls and whatnot."

"So, you didn't pay him."

"…Well no." Leo admitted. "But that's not the point!"

"Sometimes I wonder what Niko ever saw in you." Velvet was evidently allowing herself to indulge in the old memories.

Leo shuddered to the woman's amusement. "Please, don't remind me of her. She was so…  _scary_. I don't even know why! I think it was just because I was so 'mysterious' or something that the girl chased after me every chance she got! Every time she came around I would have to run away faster than her cowardly dogs!"

Velvet let out a scoff. "Who did you run away from more, Niko or the pigs?"

Leo cringed. "The pigs. Definitely the pigs. Holy crap."

She shook her head. "Again, I wonder what Niko ever saw in you."

The man shrugged. "My handsome looks, perhaps?"

"Please. You're revolting to even pigs."

"Will you stop using the pigs as an excuse to mock me!?"

"Most likely? Never." Velvet let out slyly.

Leo sighed. "Yeah, figured as much."

He tossed the bullet once more in the air, but had a hard time finding it in the night. "Crap-!" He swore as he only managed to graze the bullet rather than catch it, sending the bullet flying upwards to the left over the railing.

With a grotesque but familiar squelch, Velvet's daemon arm exploded out of her bandaged left arm and caught the bullet before it fell overboard.

"Clumsy idiot." She muttered.

Leo grinned sheepishly. "Well, I won't deny it at this point."

Velvet moved her pulsating claw over to Leo. Leo unblinkingly plucked the round from the middle of the giant palm. As the therion dispelled her arm, Leo pocketed the round back into his coat.

Leo broke the silence. "…I need you to quit brooding by yourself, Velvet. Or else."

"Or else what?" Velvet challenged, raising an eyebrow.

Leo smiled disarmingly. "Or I'll shoot you again."

"…You have a strange idea of friendship." Velvet muttered.

"Well, in my defense, you're always threatening to eat me so…"

"…I guess you have a point." She shrugged. "Anyways, what I do is up to me, and no one else. Your concern is wasted on me." She reaffirmed once more, unyielding in her determination.

The two fell back into silence, watching as stars appeared in the sky, reflecting off the endless void of the ocean around them. The creaking of the ship, the muted whispers on the deck. All of it surrounded them and engulfed them in a different world.

"Nevertheless…" Velvet whispered. "…Thank you."

Leo smiled. "Anytime."

And for once, Leonex Davidson felt at home. For just a little while longer, he found that he was content simply enjoying this moment, forgetting everything else. This was what he wanted to do. And he was glad he was doing it.

The two stayed there long after the sun had set, together.


	24. C22 - Sand

**Chapter 22 – Sand.**

"I hate the sun." Leo griped.

"That's the seventh time you've said that." Eleanor grit out.

"That doesn't make it any less true." Was the responding whine.

"So," Velvet observed dryly, "you hate the rain,  _and_  you hate the sun. What don't you hate?"

Leo wriggled his eyebrows suggestively. "Having two  _lovely_  ladies on each arm."

The corresponding whack of a spear pole to his back combined with the slam of an iron boot to the shin simultaneously crippled Leo who keeled over onto the beach face-first. "Argh!" The man cried, sputtering through the sand. " _Kidding_! God! Pair of vixens!" The two women gave each other an appreciative high-five in a rare show of unity over Leo's suffering.

Ignoring the overdramatic groaning of the group's resident firearms expert, Velvet turned to Magilou. "You said this Grimoirh likes to watch the water, right?"

Magilou bounced in affirmation. "Yep! She loves to watch the waves come in… and out… in… and out…" She waved her body with the words. "She's not really one for high cliffs so we'll just need to keep looking along the shore here. We'll find her for sure!"

Eleanor nodded appreciatively. "I won't complain about spending more time on a beach." She seemed to be genuinely enjoying her time here.

Leo dusted sand off his precious rifle and spat some out of his mouth as he got back to his feet. "But I sure will." He muttered sourly.

Velvet deadpanned. "Then lose the jacket." She pointedly glanced at Leo's rather heavy coat.

Leo cringed. "What, and lose the conveniently organized pockets of ammunition?! Not in a million years!"

Eizen waved a hand. "Then you can't complain if it's by choice, can you?"

"Watch me." Leo glared back petulantly.

"I'd rather not." Velvet grumbled. "Keep your mouth shut for the next thirty minutes or I'm tearing that jacket off you and throwing it into the ocean." She snarled.

With a muffled grunt, Leo clamped his mouth firmly shut. He had no doubt the vicious daemon would do such a horrendous act. Hawk trotted up to him through the sand and gave him a knowing, sympathetic pat on the boot. Leo supposed he now knew how the malak felt all the time.

Laphicet snickered as he watched the exchange. Suddenly, he noticed something in the distance down the beach. "Look!"

Everyone stopped walking and turned to see a hint of purple in the distance.

Eleanor squinted. "What is it Laphicet?" She asked. "It just looks like a group of daemons."

"Doesn't that hat look like the ones on the figurines that merchant was selling back in Yesult?"

Velvet narrowed her eyes, making full use of her daemon-enhanced vision to confirm Laphicet's words. Sure enough, there was a distinctive floppy hat poking out from the middle of the grouped daemons. "Good spot Laphicet." She complemented. "Then that must be Grimoirh."

Rokurou grinned. "Looks like we'll have to fight our way to her huh? Fine by me!"

"That goes without saying." Eleanor pointed out dryly. "Anything involving swinging swords is fine by you."

"Well," the man laughed, "I won't deny it. Come on!"

The group pulled out their respective weapons and charged towards the group of daemons surrounding the unconcerned malak. Suddenly, a giant version of the little lizard daemons appeared; a mother, it would seem. The smaller daemons all scampered off, leaving them the aggravated mother daemon to contend with.

Rokurou charged in heedlessly. "Heads up! We've got big fish to fry!"

Velvet nodded. "Let's go!"

The group charged in.

* * *

"You thought I would stop there?!"

" **Annihilating CRASH!"**

CRUNCH!

The massive daemon, a giant claw violently gouged deeply and bloodily into its side, fell limp. Velvet's arm began to pulse and devour the beast, eagerly sucking in the life of another victim.

While this went on, Eleanor relaxed and put her spear away. "While that was a tough adversary…" She put a thoughtful finger to her lips. "Something felt off… during that battle."

Rokurou slid his blades back into their sheaths. "Huh! Now that you mention it, you're right! What were we missing?"

Eizen shrugged. "Beats me. The only thing I can think of is that was that the daemon took ages to defeat."

Hawk quietly nudged Laphicet's legs. "…Oh!" Laphicet popped a fist into an open palm. He turned around to face Leo, whom was only now approaching the battlefield. "Leo? Why didn't you fight with us?"

Leo abruptly held up a finger, shutting Laphicet up.

Eleanor's eyes narrowed. "Leo! That's rude!" She reprimanded.

Leo simply moved the finger up to her as well, seemingly concentrating on something else.

Velvet, having finished absorbing the daemon, walked over while slinging blood off her bandaged arm. "What's wrong?" She asked.

The finger was moved over to her as well. Leo appeared to be close to bursting for some reason.

Magilou danced in place. "Is he sick?! Does he have the Corsair's Scourge again?! Is he about to die from amazement because of my fantastic looks?!"

Leo's chest rose, and he sucked in a breath. His eyes closed in concentration.

A pause.

"ONE THOUSAND EIGHT-HUNDRED! WHOO!" Leo exploded suddenly, causing everyone to leap in surprise.

As the man began to do a little victory jig, Velvet stared in irritation. "…Did you seriously…"

Eleanor held a palm to her head. "Leo…" She hissed.

"What? What? What happened? Why did the guy just start spouting numbers?!" Magilou looked rapidly from Leo to Eleanor to Velvet back and forth in bewilderment.

Leo stopped dancing and gasped for breath, hands on his knees, drawing Magilou's attention. "Whew! And here I thought I wouldn't be able to save my coat!" He tenderly gathered a fistful of his coat and rubbed the material on his cheek. "Oh, whitty baby, it's alright. I swear I won't let the big bad daemon throw you into the ocean." He cooed lovingly.

Magilou deadpanned. "You're kidding me."

Laphicet laughed. "When Velvet says she'll do something, she's pretty scary, huh?" He commented sympathetically.

Rokurou and Eizen exchanged glances. "So, he didn't fight at all because Velvet told him not to speak?" Rokurou summarized.

"Yeah." Leo straightened up and gave the daemon a confirming nod. "With so many of you against a single opponent that was that erratic, it would've been way too dangerous to discharge any bullets without any verbal warning."

Velvet sighed. "So, you just sat there and did nothing." She summarized with exasperation.

Leo looked defensive. "Hey! I did do  _something_!" He puffed his chest out. "I counted each second accurately with 100% proper spacing! Not a single mistake!"

Velvet glared.

Laphicet tugged at the woman's right arm lightly. "It's alright Velvet. Leo  _did_  do what you asked, after all." He reasoned. "You can't get mad at him for that."

Eleanor shrugged. "I'm glad you don't give me orders like that, at least."

Velvet muttered incomprehensibly about something and turned away from the group.

"… _Anyways,_ " she stressed forcefully, glancing around. "Where did that malak go?"

* * *

Leo let out a groan, slouching back in his chair. "I was never cut out for linguistics." He muttered.

He, Laphicet, and the newly-introduced malak Grimoirh were alone in an inn room in a town some ways past the stretch of beach where they'd met her. The sun was setting outside while the three were cooped up inside trying to decipher the book that Laphicet had found in the Loegres villa back when the group had been assassinating the High Priest Gideon.

Grim gave the man a look. "You've been quite the help so far, actually." She commented wisely. "I don't think we could've gotten this far on our own. It's really quite impressive." She praised.

Leo shook his head dismissively. "Thanks, but regardless, this stuff is  _way_ too boring."

"Really?" Laphicet looked up from the book at him with puppy eyes. "I think this stuff is super interesting!"

Grim looked on with approval.

Leo shrugged. "To each man his own, I suppose." He abruptly pushed his wooden chair back and stood up, the floorboards squeaking with the added weight put on his boots. "I'm going out for some air." He announced. "I'll be back soon."

The other two gave him a nod, their gazes returning back to the irritating book on the desk. Leo sighed and rubbed his eyes a few times and left the room, giving the innkeeper a grateful nod on his way out of the building. He stepped outside into the blissfully cold sunset breeze and took in the view appreciatively.

The town of Haria, the home of the old beliefs, was quaint and small.

They had arrived here after Laphicet had convinced Magilou's malak friend to translate the book for him. They had been here for quite some time now waiting for the translation to progress. Leo could spot members of his party here and there throughout the village with a single cursory glance. They weren't exactly the subtlest of people.

The town itself was amazingly small; within the range of 10 to 20 huts total. He walked to the edge of the elevated beach walkway and took a good long look around the small village. The shouts of a group of children playing some sort of sport down in the shadowed town center by the stalls echoed throughout the walled town. Fishermen were returning to shore, gathering up their catch and hauling them back to their homes to use for dinner. Small as it was, this town was undoubtedly peaceful compared to the other places he'd been.

It almost reminded him of Aball, in some ways.

Footsteps on the wood behind him prompted him to turn around and find Eleanor walking up to him. "How's progress with the translation?" she asked.

Leo sighed. "It's going well, but it's just so goddamned boring." He stretched his neck and shoulders with a groan. "I think Grim likes Laphicet though." He observed.

Eleanor smiled fondly. "Yes, it did seem like that was the case. It seems like few can resist that boy's purity."

"Yes, much like you when you refused to let him take your Sale'toma." The man reminded her.

She winced. "The mere thought of having that boy suffer through that just for my expense… It's unthinkable!"

He grinned. "See? You couldn't resist his purity." He shuddered. "…That taste's still there, in the back of my mouth." He muttered. "Does it ever fade?"

The exorcist shook her head. "Unfortunately, no…"

Leo winced. "Thought so."

The two stood there in silence in front of the inn, watching as the kids played with the ball with raucous enthusiasm at odds with the tranquility of the setting, listening to the ambiance.

"…It's such a peaceful town." Leo commented.

Eleanor nodded. She looked down, away from the villagers. "To think the Abbey is on the verge of removing their protection on the grounds of their religion…"

He shook his head. "It's just how they are." The pseudo-exorcist changed the subject abruptly. "Any food yet? I'm starving after all that translating."

Eleanor nodded. "Velvet cooked something up. It's still warm. Come on."

Leo followed her down to the beach and underneath the damp boardwalk. The two shuffled through the sand onto the open beach where a small campfire had been set up on the sand with a half-full cooking put simmering above it. Eizen and Velvet were in deep conversation, framed by the setting sun.

Leo whooped as he neared the pot. "Miso stew! Alright! I didn't know we had any miso left."

The malak and daemon took notice of his entrance and turned to him. Velvet explained, "A shopkeeper had a bunch on sale. Apparently, they were about to go bad." She shrugged. "Not easy to find business out here, I suppose."

Leo sat down at the merry campfire, humming to himself as he helped himself to a bowl of stew. Eleanor sat down as well around the campfire next to him. Leo glanced at her and noted happily that she didn't seem to be as tense around Velvet as before.

It seemed that for better or for worse, the former exorcist was slowly getting used to being a member of the group.

The other two joined them by the campfire. As he sat down in front of the flames across from Leo, Eizen prompted, "How goes the translation?"

Leo grunted and garbled out, "It's—hoo, it's hot—it's going alright. Laphicet and I have a decent handle on ancient Avarost thanks to Grim… It's just-"

"-Boring, right?" Velvet interjected, rolling her eyes.

Leo glared petulantly at her. "Yes, yes. Nice stew, by the way." He complemented.

She shrugged. "It's nothing special."

Eizen looked thoughtful. "So, what have you managed to translate so far?"

Leo stopped eating for a moment and turned contemplative. "From what we have so far, it seems as if it's a children's book of rhymes."

Eleanor blinked in confusion. "A children's book? So, was it all just a big waste of time?"

Leo shook his head. "Far from it. Countless times in the book the same phrase has popped up throughout the rhymes. Translated from ancient Avarost, the phrase says, 'The Nameless Empyrean.'"

Velvet narrowed her eyes. "The Nameless Empyrean. So, Innominat."

Leo nodded. "It seems so. We haven't gotten too much out of it so far, but I'm certain there's vital information about the nature of Innominat in that book. It'll take a long time to translate though; far more than just one night."

Eizen agreed. "I suspected as much. Ancient Avarost is infamously convoluted in the language world. The average common-tongue speaker would be utterly baffled if one were to translate the actual vocabulary word-for-word."

Leo hung his head. "That's why it's so goddamn  _tedious_! Ugh! Even one single sentence takes  _hours_  to translate!"

Velvet shook her head. "It sounds like you've done plenty so far, Leo. Now be quiet and eat your food. You'll need your stamina to translate more."

Leo grumbled, "Yes, mother Crowe." He slurped some more.

Eleanor let out a genuine laugh. "I'm surprised you let her order you around so much, Leo."

The man grimaced as he swallowed another gulp. "Let? Have you seen this daemon when she's in big-sister mode? She knows  _you'll_ follow her orders," he poked his spoon at her, "but for poor souls like me and Laphicet, she has to scare us into submission." He shuddered. "And she does."

Velvet rolled her eyes in response.

Eleanor looked off at the sunset, taken aback by Leo's statement. "Yes… she does know that, doesn't she?" She trailed off.

"As is proper." Velvet snipped lightly, uncaringly.

Eleanor's fists curled silently.

Leo glanced between the unaffected Velvet and the distraught Eleanor. He gave a sigh.

_I guess it's always going to be this way between these two._

He and Eizen exchanged a meaningful glance. The four of them sat in silence as the sun went down with few words exchanged.

Leo abruptly got up, breaking the silence. "Well, better check up on them. You guys coming?"

They nodded unanimously. As one, the four unlikely group members cleaned the campsite up and headed back with a pot full of leftover stew for Laphicet and Grim in hand.

That night, their dreams were filled with eight-headed dragons.

* * *

Laphicet yawned as he woke up the next morning.

He blinked, looking around blearily in surprise at the light filtering through the window of the inn room. Nobody else was inside. They must've decided to let him sleep in before they headed to Amenoch's temple to search for the possible therion.

He yawned again, stretching. "Ngh… Whew. Who knew translating could be that tiring!" He muttered.

He hopped off the bed, his bare feet landing gently on the wood flooring. He padded his way over to the washroom to brush his teeth. The ever-present calming waves of the sea just outside filled the silence pleasantly as the malak scrubbed his teeth obediently.

Stepping back outside after having finished up, the boy packed up his things into his ever-present carrier bag and strapped it on. Suddenly, the malak realized his compass wasn't where it was supposed to be.

"Huh? Where'd you go?" Laphicet breathed, glancing anxiously around.

His eyes latched onto a chance glint of gold underneath one of the beds. Quickly as he could, he shuffled over and bent down to collect the hiding compass.

"Someone must've moved you here for safekeeping. That was nice of them." Laphicet observed, lifting the sheets to pull the compass out from under the bed.

"Huh?" He blinked as he noticed a small tattered-looking notebook lying on the floor nearby. "Someone must've dropped this on accident…" Laphicet noted absently as he picked up the journal alongside his compass and sat down absently on the bed with a creak.

He studied the pocket book. It was small and obviously well-cared for despite its age. From what he could tell just from a glance, almost every page had already been filled to the brim with various lead markings.

Laphicet opened the notebook to the first page curiously.

"…The Davidson Phenomenon?"

Laphicet blinked at the strange phrase.

BANG!

The malak jumped in shock as the door suddenly burst open violently in order to allow a frantic Leo into the room. "Laphicet!" The man yelled urgently, almost frantically, as he ran into the room. "Have you seen...?!" the man trailed off abruptly as he registered the notebook in Laphicet's hands.

The notebook that was open the first page

Laphicet's eyes were wide and anxious at the man's demeanor. "L-Leo?" He tried nervously.

His expression was uncharacteristically hard. "…Laphicet." The man let out slowly. His eyes narrowed. "Give me that book, please. Now."

He extended an expectant hand.

Laphicet jumped and quickly gave the man his notebook as quickly as he could. "I-I'm sorry Leo!" The malak stammered quickly, tumbling over the words. "I was looking for my compass and someone had put it under the bed and I just happened to see it on the floor and-!"

"Whoa there, kid!" Leo interrupted quickly, raising his arms in a placating manner. "It's alright. I'm not mad." He smiled brightly; his hard expression had vanished as if it had never even existed. His entire body seemed to untense as the pocketbook slid into his inside jacket pocket, back to where it rightfully belonged.

"Thanks for finding it for me." Leo sighed with untold relief. "I would've freaked if I'd lost that somewhere along Maclair Beach." He grinned sheepishly, scratching his head.

Laphicet nodded hesitantly. "R-right." The malak paused indecisively, until his curiosity eventually won the battle.

"Um, Leo?" The malak spoke up. "…What's the Davidson Phenomenon?"

And then instantly that hard face was back once again. It was a side of Leo that Laphicet had never seen before, and it scared him. Leo let out a long breath, looking away from the malak. The silence continued tensely.

Laphicet, cursing his prying, stammered nervously, "I-If it's important to you it's alright! You don't have to tell me! I was just-!"

"It's an old family obsession." Leo interrupted shortly, his eyes staring off into the distance.

The roaring of the waves outside filled the silence inside the inn room.

Laphicet blinked, tilting his head. "An old… family obsession?"

Leo shook his head, his expression softening and his body untensing. "…One I don't intend to share with you. You're better off not knowing, Laphicet." He met the boy's eyes warmly and gave him a pat on the head. "Thanks for finding my book. Come on." He urged, gesturing with his head. "Velvet and the others are waiting outside."

Laphicet nodded. "…Alright." The malak stepped around the man and opened the door, heading out with a few curious glances back.

Leo's smile faltered as the door swung shut firmly.

Now alone, the man sighed softly and slowly reached back into his jacket pocket and pulled out his notebook. The one containing his precious, precious notes on everything. He flipped to the first page, almost glaring at the words.

"…The Davidson Phenomenon." Leo tasted the disgustingly familiar words.

* * *

He still remembered that day.

He had been 5 at the time.

He remembered standing by his grandfather's deathbed as the man lay dying of old age.

He remembered his father holding his grandfather's hand and hearing his dying words.

He still remembered those words, clearly and distinctively. Those words that would prove to be a curse upon the family.

Upon both Leo's father and Leo himself.

"My son…" He remembered the soft, weak, mewling voice of a man who had left much undone in life. "Please. You must promise me…" Despite his weakness, Leo remembered seeing his grandfather's hand clench his father's tightly.

"You must promise me you will finish what I started. Promise me…"

And that had been the exact moment when his grandfather's hand had fallen limp. And just like that, Leo's grandfather had taken his last breath on Earth.

All his father had left to show was a crumpled scrap of paper held in his hand; the mark of an old scientist's obsession.

And just like that, the Davidson Phenomenon had been passed down a generation.

* * *

Leo sighed, gazing at the product of generations of family secrets in his hands.

2.11170314301282…

The seemingly arbitrary assignment of numbers continued on for pages.

A specific frequency of radiation. A worlds-spanning constant.

A signature.

Leo's eyes narrowed. "What a load of garbage." He huffed derisively.

With a snap, the book snapped shut, the memories purged from his thoughts.


	25. C23 - Temple

**Chapter 23 – Temple.**

"I-I'm Eleanor Hume, an exorcist of the Abbey."

Eleanor gestured to Leo. "And this is my partner, Leonex Davidson, a fellow orderly." Leo gave a perfunctory nod. "Both of us will indeed be conducting patrols in the area around the Palamedes Temple. How might we be of service?"

Eleanor and Leo trotted up to the Innkeeper's daughter whom had stopped them by the east entrance to Haria village.

The young woman glanced between both Leo and Eleanor. "I… want you two to look for someone, if possible." She looked away, clearly distraught. "A mother and her child went to visit the Abbey grounds… but they haven't returned."

Leo blinked. "Would these people happen to be the Priestess of Amenoch Mahina and her daughter Kamoana? I heard some villagers talking about them earlier."

Eleanor glanced at him in surprise. She turned her gaze back to the woman. "They've gone missing?"

The innkeeper's daughter nodded soberly. "Yes." She breathed sadly. "Ever since the Abbey took over the temple… she's been regularly going back to object. But then one day she just didn't come back." She closed her eyes. "And now her daughter's gone as well."

Leo asked grimly, "Did she go looking for her mother?"

The young woman nodded. "That… is most likely the case." She shook her head. "Please, forgive Mahina for her protests. I was just hoping you could use the Abbey's resources to track them both down…"

Eleanor nodded resolutely. "…I will do everything in my power to find them. You have my word." She promised.

Leo glanced at his partner. If there was anybody Eleanor could empathize with, it would be a daughter living with a single mother. He knew just what Eleanor was feeling. This was why she had joined the Abbey, after all.

To make sure other kids didn't have to suffer through the same tragedy as she did.

He put a firm hand on Eleanor's shoulder. "You have my word as well." He promised the distraught teen. "We'll get to the bottom of this. It's what we do."

The girl sagged in obvious relief. "Thank you… Thank you both so much! You have no idea how worried I've been…"

Leo nodded. "Don't worry about it. We'll be back soon with news." He glanced over at the rest of the group watching the exchange. "Let's go, people. We've got missing people to find." He beckoned everyone forward.

As the rest of the group filed through the gate and the girl returned back to the inn, Leo gave Eleanor a firm pat. "Come on, Eleanor." He urged softly. "I'll help you as best I can." He promised sympathetically.

The praetor met his eyes thankfully. "Thank you, Leo." She intoned.

Leo gave her an empathetic grin. "Not a problem. That's what I'm here for, after all."

Eleanor smiled softly in response.

The two of them followed the rest of the group into the Manann Reef towards the Palamedes Temple.

* * *

"You know, there's nothing more annoying that wet socks." Leo complained as he reluctantly shifted his weight onto an underwater foothold that was deeper than he'd liked, soaking his pants up to his knee.

"I'm going to have to agree with you on that point." Eleanor agreed as she herself gingerly tried to find footholds on the underwater rocks that wouldn't lead to her slipping and falling into the clear waters.

The two of them were lagging behind the rest of the group, having come across a section of reef that was completely submerged by water. The rest of the group, being a combination of malaks, daemons, and witches that could fly on guardians, had nonchalantly swum/flown over the deep portion, leaving them waiting on the other side of the deep end watching as the two humans struggled to find their way over to them.

Rokurou, clearly unaffected by his dripping wet clothes, scratched the back of his head and noted wryly, "Heh. Having humans in the group sure makes things more inconvenient."

Velvet gave an exasperated sigh, flicking her arm disdainfully. "You two do realize that the sun is up, correct?" She called across the shining waters. "Your clothes will dry within an hour. You might as well just go for a swim and hurry things along."

Leo shook his head. "And have to deal with the residual salt in my clothes?" He shot back indignantly. "No, thank you." He ground out, gingerly testing a rock outcropping for stability before stepping onto it.

"How's it going over there, Eleanor?" He called out to the praetor who was following a different section of reef leading to where the rest of the group were standing on dry rocks, watching the two.

"It's not looking good." Eleanor called back. "It looks like the rocks here all taper out underwater. Ah!" She squeaked as some water lapped at her exposed legs.

Velvet groaned. "Oh, for the love of…" She tapped her index finger on her bicep impatiently. "Get going!" She snarled.

Laphicet winced at the therion's rapidly decreasing patience. "Come on, Leo! Come on, Eleanor!" He hollered encouragingly. "First one to get over here wins!"

Hawk, from his perch on top the malak's head, howled similar encouragement.

"Shut the hell up you mutt! Why do you get to simply teleport everywhere while your vessel has to suffer through this walking nonsense!" Leo grouched as he looked around frantically for another foothold. "Damnit!" He cursed. "I'm at a dead end, too, Eleanor. Looks like I'll have to backtrack for a bit."

Eizen sighed. "Aifread would've had an uncontrollable laughing fit if he was here. Pirates who can't swim." He scoffed at the notion.

Eleanor threw the malak a dark glare across the waters. "Speak for yourself, Mr. Portable-Life-Preserver." She simpered.

Eizen shrugged nonchalantly. "At least I'm not afraid to get my clothes wet."

Eleanor hmphed. "Such rudeness! Is that any way to treat a lady?! I expected better from a non-daemon malak such as yourself!"

Bienfu spun around to his master and pleaded, "Miss Magilou! Can't you send one of your guardians to go help Madam Eleanor?! She's in desperate need of aid!"

"Hey!" Leo shouted angrily. "What about me?!"

Magilou simply grinned and pointed a light index finger at her temple. "I'm afraid, Bienfu, that my guardians only work while I'm physically on them. I'm afraid 'Madam Eleanor' will just have to suffer. How sad." She didn't sound sympathetic at all.

Rokurou shook his head in disbelief. "Leo! You're a man!" He yelled. "Come on, just get your clothes wet!"

"A man?" Velvet scoffed. "Please. Leo's the womanliest person out of all of us."

Leo cried, "Hey! That's just pure slander! EEK!" Leo let out a high-pitched squeak as his boot slipped suddenly, nearly sending him crashing into the water.

Velvet gave Rokurou a deadpan glance as the man in question flapped his arms frantically, barely managing to restore his balance in the waters. "I rest my case." She put simply.

Leo growled and muttered under his breath as he tried his best to search for any possible submerged footholds he might've missed. "Is this really the only way to the temple?" He called. "Maybe we should go back to the signpost and see if there was any other way?"

Laphicet shook his head. "Leo, there is no other way to get to the temple according to the map. Come on! You're so close already!" He urged.

"Close?! I could be on the other side of Midgand for all the good my position does me! There are no more damn footholds!"

"Ah!" Eleanor abruptly cried in success. "Leo! I found a way through!"

Indeed, the exorcist had found a series of footholds underwater that allowed her to gingerly inch her way right up to the group. Hawk yipped and leapt down from Laphicet's head, giving her a congratulatory lick as she climbed onto the blessedly dry rock. "Haha! Thank you, Hawk!" Eleanor exclaimed.

Rokurou grinned. "Nice one, Eleanor." He complemented. "You've officially emasculated Leo."

"Hey!" Leo cried angrily.

"Alright Leo! Just you left!" Laphicet called. "You can do it!"

"Alright, I'll just have to go back to the start and find Eleanor's path and I'll be right over!" Leo began tediously searching for a route back to the beginning.

Velvet hit her limit. "Oh, no you don't." She stated firmly.

With that, she leapt forwards towards the man with a running start.

Leo's eyes widened in panic. "Hey, whoa now, let's talk about this-! W-wait no, STOP-!"

SPLASH.

His words were abruptly cut off as he was promptly kicked underwater with the force of a bulldozer. The group watched as one as Velvet alighted lightly onto the reef that Leo had been previously standing on, having vacated the position with a precise drop kick.

"GAH!" Leo gasped as he surfaced miserably, his entire body officially soaking wet. "VELVET!" He spat copious amounts of liquid out while treading water. "YOU MONSTER!" He cried.

"Heh." Velvet watched with obvious amusement and satisfaction as the man had no choice but to swim to where the rest of the group was.

Hawk and Laphicet helped lug a thoroughly soaked Leo onto the hot rocks. "Damnit all to hell." The man muttered, heaving onto the rough rocks and cursing everything in this world.

Laphicet chuckled. "Well, I guess that was the punishment for losing."

Hawk licked Leo's face encouragingly.

"Will you quit it!" He groaned, swatting the wolf away. "I'm wet enough as it is!"

The man looked up sourly from his lying position as Velvet landed casually from her inhuman leap that she had made from Leo's former position to the rocks where the rest of the group were.

"Don't be a baby." She said dryly. "Come on." He pouted as the daemon offered him a hand.

Despite himself, Leo grabbed the woman's hand and pulled himself up, water dripping off his wet clothing. "I hate you." He stated matter-of-factly.

Velvet shrugged and turned around, walking onwards. "Don't care." She pointed out dryly. "Come on. Let's get moving."

As the group started travelling as one again, Leo became aware of a blessed drying sensation in front of his body. He glanced down in surprise to find Hawk trotting alongside him while conjuring a light flame to speed up the drying of his wet clothes. The wolf gave the man a playful yip.

Leo sighed with a smile. "…Alright fine, you've redeemed yourself bud. Thanks."

Hawk nudged the man affectionately.

"Hey Leo?" Laphicet spoke up curiously. "Aren't you worried about your notebook inside your coat? Wouldn't it have gotten wet just now?"

Leo shook his head. "I've had that notebook for years, Laphicet. There would've been no way it could've survived all that time if I hadn't made the pockets in my coat waterproof." He shook his head. "I appreciate the concern, but I'd rather not talk anymore of about it. It's personal."

Laphicet nodded. "…Okay Leo." And just like that, the matter was dropped.

He knew this was just how Leo was, in his own weird way. Everyone did.

Still grumbling sourly about the already scratchy-feeling clothes, Leo followed the rest of this group towards the Palamedes temple.

* * *

The blood-curdling scream split the silence, startling everyone in the group as they neared the entrance to the submerged temple.

"Well whaddya know," Magilou concluded with a bounce, "that terrifying daemon we've been hearing so much about got here first." She eyed Eizen. "Convenient, wouldn't you say Mr. Reaper?"

Eleanor kneeled down by the bodies of exorcist orderlies and soldiers dotting the ground up to the temple. "…They're all dead." She shook her head angrily. "To think a daemon would be so bold as to attack an entire contingent of exorcists!"

Rokurou muttered, "To think a daemon would be so  _strong_  as to manage to kill said contingent, too."

Velvet waved a dismissive hand. "All the better for us. Come on. Be ready in case that thing comes after us."

Leo nodded. "Alright. Eleanor." He gave his friend a pat on the back. "Come on. You need to help take point."

Eleanor nodded firmly, standing up. "I'll do my best." She took one last look down at her fallen comrades. "…If we come across that daemon, I won't hesitate."

As the group followed Velvet, Eizen pointed out, "Keep in mind why we're here. We're only checking for a therion at the earthpulse point, and not looking for excess trouble."

Leo shrugged, slipping the rifle off his shoulder and making sure it was chambered. "To be fair, I'd bet Magilou anything that we're going to run into that daemon."

"Nope." Magilou hmphed. "Not biting again. I still mourn the 50 gald I lost to Rokurou on whether we'd run into the daemon in Warg Forest."

Rokurou laughed. "I swear, you tried  _so hard_  to get out of it too. Little did you expect Laphicet to literally  _run into_  the daemon by smacking face first into it."

The boy in question winced. "That Rhinostagros had really hard skin too…"

Leo shrugged. "Anyways, let's get going. Daemon or no daemon."

Suddenly, another scream tore through the open doorway, this time much, much closer. Everyone instantly pulled out their weapons.

Leo winced, his grip on his rifle tightening instinctively. "Magilou, I really wish we'd made that bet."

The witch grinned, calling out her guardians to appear on her fingertips. "And I really wish I'd learned to get into literature. Oh well. Some things in life you just can't have."

"Cut the chatter!" Velvet yelled urgently. "Move!"

"Right!" Eleanor nodded determinedly, her spear at the ready.

As one, the group entered the temple and descended down into the depths.

* * *

"P-Please no! NO-!"

CRUNCH.

The group arrived just in time to watch as a monstrous purple werewolf crushed the head of an exorcist orderly, his now lifeless bloody body falling unceremoniously to the floor and joining the other bodies lining the chamber. The daemon abruptly turned its head and locked its gaze onto the group. In particular, its eyes zeroed in on Eleanor's uniform. It gave a bone-jarring roar, facing the group fully.

Leo swore, raising his rifle. "Look at the pendant it's wearing!"

Eleanor's eyes widened in horror. "The symbol of Amenoch?! I-It can't be!" She cried in disbelief.

Laphicet gasped. "That daemon must be Mahina!"

The daemon let out another roar and charged the group.

"Here it comes!" Rokurou warned, charging forward to meet the daemon with a cry.

The two crashed hard, Rokurou being forced to leap back as the daemon swiped both claws through the air, snarling viciously.

CRACK!

"Eleanor! Get moving!" Leo yelled as he cocked his rifle and ran, trying to maintain distance away from the daemon. The bullet he had fired impacted the daemon right as it was about to attack Rokurou again, causing it to recoil and barely manage to dodge Velvet's sword swing.

Eleanor shook her head firmly and raised her spear. "On it!" She leapt determinedly into the fray, backing up Velvet with her longer spear reach and helping the therion try and keep the daemon contained in the center of the chamber.

"Guys! Back up!" Laphicet called urgently, an arte circle forming underneath him.

Everyone attacking the daemon complied, leaping backwards just in time for a massive blast of thunder to strike the wolf, charring its skin and stunning it. Eleanor took the opportunity to leap forward and strike.

Her spear lodged itself into the daemon's shoulder, eliciting a howl of pain. Eleanor gritted her teeth forcefully. "I'm sorry this had to happen. I know you'll never be the same again!" Her grip on her spear tightened. "This is the least I can do!" She cried as she ripped the spear out and stabbed it in a fatal blow towards the daemon's neck.

"Damn!" Eleanor cursed as the daemon suddenly leapt backwards with a surprising amount of remaining energy and ran deeper into the temple, leaving the group alone in a chamber surrounded by corpses.

Everyone caught their breath and sheathed their weapons. "It ran." Leo grunted, reloading his rifle absently. "Why do I get the feeling that daemon's got some ulterior motive to killing exorcists?"

Laphicet muttered, "She used to be Mahina… so, maybe she's still looking for her daughter?"

"No." Eleanor shakily released a breath and put her spear away. "Daemons don't feel things like that anymore." She shook her head, facing Laphicet sadly. "Once a person turns daemon, they lose everything they used to have when they were a daemon. They might have a certain level of consciousness… but that's it." She looked around soberly. "…It's most likely that this daemon simply fled on animal instinct. Nothing more."

"…Then what about Velvet or Rokurou?" Leo pointed out. "Or Kurogane and Dyle? How about those guys?" He shook his head. "I also used to think daemons were all mindless beasts… but not anymore. Perhaps what Laphicet is suggesting is true."

Eleanor shook her head firmly. "I don't believe it. Daemons are all simply animals with varying degrees of leftover consciousness and nothing more." She held a hand close to her heart. "It's the least we can do to put them down and keep them from hurting humans. Unchecked, daemons can destroy entire villages and cities."

"…Just as they destroyed my village." Her fists tightened in emotion.

Leo stepped up wordlessly behind her and put a hand on her shoulder. He didn't agree with what she was saying, but he knew from personal experience how hard it would be to overcome her own preconceptions about daemons.

It had taken the face of an old friend from the past to show him the truth, after all.

Velvet's voice suddenly rang out. "We'll let the daemon be for now. It's of no consequence to us. In fact, the more exorcists it wipes out, the better."

Eleanor whipped around to the daemon in response, opening her mouth.

Velvet raised a meaningful eyebrow.

"…As you command, daemon." Eleanor seethed.

Leo sighed and removed his hand from Eleanor's shoulder. "…Let's go. The quicker we get out of here, the better." He prompted, breaking the silence.

The group moved on, ignoring the distant howling and screams as the daemon ran rampant among the ranks of the exorcists and soldiers in the underwater temple.

* * *

"Make sure it doesn't eat you!" Rokurou warned as he dodged a root-appendage swung his way.

"That would be 'therion'-comfortable!" Magilou cackled as she cast a spell, creating a spike of pure water that distracted the therion while Rokurou retreated, getting some distance from the monster.

Leo grumbled, "Magilou!" He fired his rifle at one of the tree daemon's weaker limbs, rendering it unusable. "I'll have you know from 'therion'-out, you're not allowed to make any more puns!" He yelled, reloading his rifle.

The group had found the earthpulse point at the deepest chamber of the Palamedes temple; Laphicet's senses had confirmed it. There, the group had also encountered a therion; one of Innominat's seven 'malevolence-devouring' heads. To defeat Innominat, they would have to sever the heads.

Hence the current battle.

Magilou let out a hmph as she leapt back, avoiding the therion's wind spell cast her way. "Argh! You're no fun!" She absent-mindedly sent a healing spell at Laphicet. "How 'therion'-couth of you!"

"Hey!" Leo cried. "You're not allowed to reuse the same pun!" He cursed and dove to the side as a tree limb smashed into the floor inches away from him.

"Says who? Is there a code of honor when it comes to puns?!" She scoffed as she sent an explosion at the daemon. "A sort of 'therion'-nor code? I think not!"

"That was horrible!" Leo complained harshly, getting to his feet in a roll and aiming his gun from a crouch.

CRACK!

"I'd like to see you come up with something better!" Magilou shot back, cringing as a limb bashed into the stones millimeters away from her person. The daemon advanced alarmingly quickly upon the casting witch.

"Both of you, shut the hell up before you get yourselves killed!" Velvet roared, driving the therion away from the witch with kicks and sword stabs.

"That would be 'therion'-comfortable!" Leo mocked.

"Argh!" Magilou whined. "That's plagiarism! I demand full compensation for your transgressions!"

Leo grinned. "On what grounds?!" He cocked his rifle and swung it behind him, instead extending his blade and deftly slashing at a limb getting too close. The limb was severed completely to the agony of the daemon.

Magilou glared at the man. "For emotional distress!"

Leo huffed as he hopped away from the enraged therion and had Hawk come in and make some distance with a flame wall. "Please! You look like a clown! If anything, I should be suing  _you_ for emotional trauma!"

"You did NOT just call me a clown!" Magilou seethed.

"I said,  _shut up!_ " Velvet yelled fiercely as she clawed the daemon in the back with overwhelming inhuman force, sending it crashing into the wall at the other end of the chamber. She snapped her head backwards and glared at the two in question.

Leo gulped. "Er, yes ma'am."

"Oh poo." Magilou muttered. "You're no fun."

"Careful!" Eizen suddenly interrupted urgently. "It's casting something big!"

"Velvet! Leo!" Laphicet yelled urgently. "Watch out!"

Needing no further prompting, both therion and human sprang into action, throwing themselves away as a massive portion of the tiled ground cratered upwards before exploding in a shower of lethal rubble.

"Someone hurry up and take that goddamn therion out!" Leo yelled, barely managing to avoid the falling rocks as he rolled around on the ground.

"On it!" Eleanor responded, charging the tree therion. With deft movements, the praetor dodged numerous overhead swipes and retaliated by striking her spear directly through the mouth of the daemon, aiming for the grotesque image of a child inside the daemon.

"AAAAAGGHHHH!"

The daemon suddenly stilled as the spear pierced the inside of the daemon. Eleanor hurriedly yanked her spear out and leapt away as the therion began to thrash about wildly in agony. She readied herself to deliver a killing blow.

"Eleanor!" Velvet yelled urgently. "Get back!"

Quickly, Eleanor obeyed, just in time to avoid a clawed pounce by Mahina the daemon, who let out a savage roar at the group.

"Is… is she protecting the therion?" Leo muttered quietly. He swore as Eleanor's spear rose. "Wait! Eleanor don't-!" He yelled out in vain.

SHINK.

The stab made contact right through the daemon's neck. A fatal wound. Eleanor promptly pulled out her spear with a cry, letting the blood gush out of the wound rapidly. Mahina collapsed to the ground, dying.

"...This is all I can do for you." Eleanor breathed, catching her breath. "I'm sorry."

"…!" She gasped as Mahina crawled. Not towards her, but towards the therion.

The ghastly but distinctly feminine voice rang out throughout the chamber.

"I'm… so… sorry… Ka… mo… ana…"

The Therion, in its mad thrashings, leapt as something living entered its reach. The daughter promptly devoured the mother's body, freely offered.

"N-No!" Eleanor gasped.

"This… This can't be happening!"

The group watched, silent, as the monster fed, the cries of a regretful mother dying out along with her body.

With a disgusting squelch, the therion finished its last meal.

And with that, the therion lost all its drive to kill, and regressed into its true form. A little child with green hair. A daughter that had just lost her mother.

"Mommy… Mommy… I tried so hard to be strong for you, Mommy… The man from the Abbey made me strong…" the girl sobbed to herself.

"The Abbey… made her strong?" Velvet muttered.

Leo held a hand up to his forehead. "…They turned her into a therion." He hissed. "All of this… It's all on purpose." He glanced anxiously at Eleanor. "They trapped a little girl alone and left her mother to become a daemon…"

"Then…!" Eleanor stammered, "Then… That woman… Mahina… She was trying to save her own daughter!" Tears ran down her cheeks as the wailing of the poor girl rose in volume. "This is my fault…!" She realized with horror.

Leo looked on sadly. This was what waking up to reality looked like.

All he could do was place a hand on Eleanor's shoulder wordlessly. Eleanor reached over her shoulder instinctively and grasped it hard.

"Leo…" Eleanor breathed in a shaky voice. "You were right…"

"Quiet." Leo shook his head. "It's not your fault." He soothed as best he could.

 _It's the Abbey's_.

The more he learned about what the Abbey had been doing, the more he needed to know  _why_.

Eleanor just shook her head wordlessly in response, the tears running down her cheeks silently.

Rokurou spoke up, "So… Should we bring her with us?" He gestured to the bawling little girl.

"..." Velvet was silent.

Leo's gaze flew to her. He gestured to the distraught Eleanor meaningfully behind her back.

Velvet's expression was unreadable as she considered him.

"That therion isn't going anywhere."

Everyone instantly whirled around to face the entrance as Exorcist Praetor Oscar Dragonia entered with a grim face and an unsheathed sword.

"Oscar." Leo let out, ignoring his own weapons as everyone drew theirs around him and walking calmly forward.

"Osca-!" Leo harshly silenced Eleanor's emotional cry with a hand. He held her gaze meaningfully. Reluctantly, Eleanor silenced herself.

With a glance at Velvet, Leo promptly walked up to Oscar, ignoring his drawn sword.

"Leo." Oscar greeted, breaking the silence. "So, it is true. You've changed sides." He stated.

Leo shook his head. "You always asked me why it was that I never wanted to enlist." He began. "I'll admit now that I never quite told you the full truth."

He ran a hand through his hair. "In truth, I always found the Abbey to be a  _dangerous_  organization." He explained. "There's a saying where I come from; that absolute power corrupts absolutely. I just couldn't know for sure if such an all-powerful, self-righteous organization like the Abbey could really be the savior of mankind they claimed they were."

He abruptly gestured behind him, towards the quietly sobbing child in the end of the chamber. "So, please tell me, Oscar. What the  _hell_ is that." He asked darkly. "If being a traitor means going against  _that_ , I'd gladly betray the Abbey a million times over."

His voice raised harshly. "Because there is a  _little girl_  who was taken from her mother and  _trapped_ in an underground cell alone and turned into a  _monster_."

"I WANT ANSWERS!" He roared.

" _How could this be reasonable_?! How can  _you_ , a reasonable man who I respected, who wanted to save the world from suffering, condone such atrocity?!"

His question hung in the air, leaving silence in the chamber, broken only by the muffled sobs of the imprisoned daughter.

Oscar seemed conflicted. He glanced at the poor suffering daughter and at Leo.

The crying had receded into depressed sniffles.

And just like that, the praetor came to a decision.

"…I always saw you as a reasonable man, Leo." Oscar admitted quietly. "The first moment I met you at the mess hall I knew you had the potential in you to be a beacon of hope for mankind."

He shook his head. "And… I still believe you can be redeemed. I still believe you can see reason." He met Leo's eyes determinedly, his voice gaining momentum. "So, I shall tell you.

"All of it." He stated.

He shifted his feet, sword now hanging loosely by his side but still at the ready.

"This girl is a sacrifice. She is a necessary cost of an ideal world." He clenched his fist, holding it tightly against his breast.

"The reason for this is one word." He stated, meeting the man's eyes firmly.

Eizen and Magilou shifted, already knowing what the man was going to say.

"…Malevolence."

**End of Part 3 – Magilou's Menagerie.**


	26. C24 - Consequences

**Chapter 24 – Consequences.**

Leo blinked. "Malevolence?"

Oscar nodded. He held his hand up to his breast. "Each and every human in this world carries within them… a darkness." His eyes fell on the daemons of the group. "Such darkness is borne of emotion. And when one's emotion overflows… a daemon is born."

"You… you mean to say," Eleanor gasped in shock, "that daemonblight… is a lie?!"

Oscar met the former praetor's eyes. "Yes." He admitted frankly. "I'm sure your malak companions know of this." His eyes glanced over at Eizen.

Velvet turned a hard gaze onto the man. "…Is this true?" She asked in a dangerously low voice.

Eizen inclined his head slowly. "…It's taboo among malakhim." He explained softly. "For humanity's own safety." He shook his head. "I'll explain more in detail later." He muttered succinctly.

Velvet studied him closely before turning her gaze back onto Oscar. "…Then why the therion?" She prompted.

Laphicet spoke up abruptly. "The therions… devour 'Malevolence.'" He recalled.

Leo's face dawned with horror, registering the decrypted song lyrics from the book on Innominat. "You mean…" He gasped, his eyes widening. "But if that's the case-!"

Oscar nodded with deep satisfaction at the man's revelation. "Removing the therion from the earthpulse point will cause the malevolence to overflow, and consequently destroy the lives of thousands."

Laphicet gasped. "You don't mean!"

"Yep!" Magilou nodded deceptively cheerily. "If you don't have a therion at an earthpulse point, everyone in the surrounding area will start turning into daemons!" She grinned evilly. "One life for a thousand. What a nifty exchange rate." She sang.

"That can't be!" Eleanor yelled, tears in her eyes.

Oscar's eyes hardened as he glared at the traitorous praetor. "That is how this world is." He stated harshly. "This is the truth. Should this girl be taken away from this earthpulse, the blood of hundreds of people will be on your hands, and your hands alone."

His eyes zeroed in on Leo's. "Does that choice not seem clear?!" He roared loudly, impassionedly. "Which will you choose?! The lives of one daughter, or the lives of dozens of daughters?!" He slammed his fist onto his breast. " _This_  is how the Abbey saves the world from suffering! Through  _necessary sacrifice_. Through a sword of  _will and reason_." He declared heatedly. "WE DO WHAT MUST BE DONE! No matter how painful it might be, no matter how twisted it might seem, we do it! For the  _greater good_!"

He extended a hand. "Do you not see Leo?! Join us." He pleaded. "You were always a skeptical person, but one grounded in reason. You should see now that the path you are on will only lead to destruction and suffering." He took a step forward, eyes unwavering. "Please." He breathed softly. "Help me fight these monsters who seek only the destruction of our world for their own selfish and pointless needs."

Leo stared at the hand.

This was the truth. This was how the world actually worked. And it was horrifying.

What did he choose?

He glanced back at them. His group. His friends. They were the bad guys, he knew that. But he'd never truly faced that fact until right now.

His eyes inadvertently met Velvet's. Those amber eyes were hard and cold as they stared emotionlessly back at him. Leo was doubting his position in the group and they both knew it. He watched as her fists clenched in emotion. She didn't care. He knew. She would do anything for her revenge.

That was just the sort of daemon she had become.

He knew he cared for both Velvet and Eleanor. But did that really justify helping to destroy the lives of  _so many other people_?! He had no idea.

He couldn't think straight.

"Do you not see, Leo?" Oscar intoned softly, his light words echoing off the chamber walls surrounding them. He glanced over at the woman by the man's side. "You too, Eleanor. Do you not see that this is all a necessary sacrifice? This world's pain and suffering comes at a price. The best way to save everyone… is to pay it."

Eleanor's fists clenched, tears rolling down her cheeks. "B…But!" She stammered. "To… To turn that girl into therion!" She exhaled shakily. "To put her mother through so much suffering that she turned into a daemon and offered herself to her own daughter!" She cried, "She was her mother! She was all this girl had!" Her breath hitched. "Her one and only mother…"

Oscar looked away in emotion, clearly pained by the tragedy. A certain degree of shame clearly also haunted his conscience. "…It's true. It's all horrible." He admitted quietly.

Fisting his hands, the praetor shook his head resolutely. "…But even more horrible would be if even more daemons spread through the land. Just like your village. Just like what happened to your mother." Oscar said softly, avoiding eye contact.

"…!" Eleanor shook with indecision. "That… That!"

CRASH!

Eleanor and Leo flinched as Velvet suddenly attacked the distracted Oscar, sending him crashing harshly into the waters surrounding the chamber. "It's not nice to make a girl cry." She muttered hatefully at the unconscious body by the water.

She turned her eyes to Leo.

He avoided her gaze.

She strutted past him without another word.

"It's now or never." Rokurou announced, breaking the silence.

Eleanor shook with indecision. "I… I…" She stared at the sobbing girl. She saw a young girl, trapped underground forever, a prisoner for the good of everyone else. She turned around and saw Velvet approaching, daemon arm extended.

"Wait!" She blocked the therion's path.

"Move." Velvet growled.

"If… If you're going to do this…" Eleanor shook her head. "At least spare the child! You just need to weaken Innominat! You just have to sever the link! Have you no compassion?!"

Velvet's expression didn't change. "This isn't up for discussion." She brushed roughly past the woman.

_No. That monster. She wouldn't!_

Leo shook himself out of his shock and ran up to the rest of the group.

"NO! Don't you  _dare_!" He barked harshly.

Kamoana abruptly glanced up in fear at the monster towering over her, daemon arm raised.

The arm went down.

"VELVET!" Eleanor screamed.

Leo gasped, seeing instead of an explosion of blood, a brilliant yellow glow. With a shatter, the barrier dissipated. Task complete, Velvet took one last look at the hapless child on the ground and turned around, walking back. Breaking out of their shock, Laphicet and Eleanor instantly ran forward to comfort the kid in unyielding relief.

Leo let out a shaky breath.

He'd thought… For a second there he'd believed it. He'd truly seen Velvet as a monster. One who would sacrifice thousands of lives with no qualms about killing an additional one.

He watched as Velvet returned to the group. She didn't look at him.

"I'm curious about something Grimoirh said. I can always kill this one later." Velvet explained casually.

"If we're taking her with us," Rokurou stated, "we'd better grab her and go. Oscar's forces must be regrouping above as we speak, now that Mahina's no longer wreaking havoc."

As the rest of the group healed up and Kamoana was introduced to the group and the situation, Leo stood at a distance, deeply conflicted.

Oscar's words had indeed reached him.

What he said… made sense. It made overwhelming sense. It was obvious what the clear choice was.

As he watched Hawk's attempts to cheer up Kamoana next to Eleanor as she tenderly told Kamoana of her own mother... He just simply couldn't find it in himself to feel good about it.

Who would?

Who would feel good about such an answer staring right at that lively child's face, and sentence her to eternal torment? Numbers, the greater good, sacrifices; all of those articles of reason seemed paltry in comparison that that little girl's sobbing laughter as Hawk licked her cheeks clean of tears.

It was just one of those questions that had no right answer.

But Leo would have to answer it. He needed to. There was no way he could toe the line anymore. He had to pick a side, and he had to commit to it.

That, or he could just run away once more.

Damnit. This was a big load of bullshit.

* * *

"Hawk's so adorable!" Kamoana crowed as the group trotted along the Manann Reef back towards Haria.

Laphicet giggled in response. "Isn't he?" He bent down to meet Hawk as the malak returned with a dripping wet stick in his mouth.

"Fetch on the water, huh?" Leo remarked, trotting over to the kids.

Kamoana looked at him shyly, still uncomfortable travelling with these grown-up strangers, but perked up when Laphicet readily answered, "Yeah!" He nodded. "Hawk can dry himself off, so he doesn't mind getting wet by swimming out to get the stick!"

Hawk gave a yip to his master.

Leo grinned. "Lucky bugger." He kneeled down and ruffled the wolf's sodden hair. Then, the man turned to the latest member of the group. "Hi there, Kamoana." He greeted warmly. "My name's Leo. I see you've already met my wolf." He patted the wolf's head fondly.

Kamoana's eyes lit up. "No way! You're Hawk's owner?!"

Leo puffed his chest up. "Yep! This here is my servant, made to do every order I say! I force him to go weeks without food, and to never, ever have fun. Bad Hawk!" Leo scolded roughly.

Hawk whined, and his ears drooped, beaten.

Kamoana gasped in horror. "You…" She pointed accusingly at Leo. "You're a bad man!"

"Yes. I'm a bad man and I only keep Hawk around to be my own personal footrest." Leo grinned evilly. "Now," he turned to the wolf, "Hawk! Do my bidding!" He ordered.

With a dramatic growl, Hawk shook his head.

Leo blinked. "What?! Are you refusing my commands?!" He gasped in disbelief.

The pup hefted his ears and growled at him.

Leo got up and gasped melodramatically. "The nerve!" Shock turned to anger. "You… filthy little mutt! I'll teach you to disobey me!" He picked up the stick Hawk had been playing fetch with and raised it high over his head. "Have at ye!"

Hawk growled loudly, puffing up his chest defiantly.

"Go Hawkie! Go Hawkie!" Kamoana chanted wildly. "Beat the bad man! You can do it!"

Laphicet sniggered behind her back, giving Hawk a subtle thumbs up at his emoting.

Leo struggled to keep his face straight as he roared a raucous battle cry. "Take this, scum! HYAAH!"

He 'swung' his 'sword.' Also known as moving the stick as if he were swinging in slow motion.

Hawk let out a wild howl and dodged the 'attack.'

Kamoana let out a raucous whoop. "Great job Hawkie! Now, teach the bad man some manners!" She cheered on, punching a fist into the air encouragingly.

Hawk gave a determined nod in Kamoana's direction before heroically tackling Leo into the water.

SPLASH!

"GAHAHA!" Leo sputtered as he surfaced once again from the waters of the Manann Reef. "T-that wasn't part of the plan!" He whined softly.

Meanwhile, back on land, Kamoana was cheering wildly, hugging a distinctly not-at-all-ashamed Hawk who was utterly basking in the praise. Laphicet was nearly rolling with laughter at Leo's betrayed face. Everyone else in the group had stopped to stare at the commotion. Enjoying the spectacle, no doubt.

Grumbling sourly, the man swam back to the rocky reefs. Soaking wet. Again.

He muttered vicious curse words under his breath (for he actually didn't want to swear in front of Kamoana), and offered the stick, dripping wet, to his wolf. "…Here you go, Hawk. You've bested me." Leo grumbled. "Fetch on the water, huh?"

Hawk yipped and gleefully took the stick back, ignoring his master's seething glare.

Kamoana yelled in glee, celebrating the fact that the wolf had beaten his bad master soundly. Laphicet gave Leo a sympathetic pat on the back, smiling.

Despite himself, Leo couldn't stop grinning as he watched the kid go crazy hugging his wolf, cooing warmly. He was glad he'd managed to distract her from her mother's absence. She was just so… alive. And innocent.

…To think her life was worth the lives of hundreds of others.

Leo's grin faded.

* * *

Ominous clouds greeted them as the group neared Haria.

"Not good… The Malevolence is overflowing." Eizen muttered.

Velvet eyed him closely. "Just how long have you known about this?"

Eizen shook his head. "Not now. Back at the ship." He stated firmly.

Leo glanced around anxiously. "Is it… going to be just like Oscar said?" He asked quietly.

Magilou nodded soberly. "Of course. He wasn't lying or anything silly like that. That's just how it all works."

Leo stared at her, hard. "Then…"

"If that's so," Velvet interrupted coldly, "then this'll prove a good distraction for us. Let's get through the town quickly."

Leo stared at the woman, aghast. "Do you… just not care?!" He burst out.

The woman turned to him ruthlessly. "Do I care?!" She let out a scoff. "No! Because I. Am. A.  _Daemon_." She stressed out dangerously. "It's time you  _finally_  realized that."

Leo was lost for words as the woman turned on her heel and slammed her way through the gates, uncaring of the suffering she had caused. Hawk whined at his master. Leo gave the pup a sad shake of the head before following.

Inside, the people of Haria were all listless, as if they had all forgotten what they had been doing. They were all wandering around, emitting copious amounts of purple aura that the group now recognized as malevolence.

The entire village was silent. Deathly silent.

The group blinked in surprise as Grim pattered her way up the group, a familiar book on her back. "Hey Grim!" Magilou called out in greeting. "What's up? Find out anything new about the book?" Her bright tone clashed horribly with the ominous atmosphere of the besieged village.

"No," Grim shook her head, "I'm afraid the malevolence has grown too dense for me to hole up at the inn reading." The malak explained.

"…So, it's true." Velvet muttered as she turned her gaze to the villagers.

Them the screams began.

Each and every person abruptly began howling at the top of their lungs in pure agony as the very foundation of their beings were undermined and overtaken.

Magilou noted dryly, "They're all hitting their limits."

And then just like that, the villagers of Haria succumbed to daemonblight. Or rather, malevolence.

Leo cursed as he grabbed his rifle. "Fuck!" He swore openly. "Why the fuck is everything like this?!"

Velvet grabbed the barrel of his gun firmly. "This is just how it is." She growled, making direct eye contact with the man. "Now quiet. Down." She seethed, wrenching the man's barrel down firmly. "We'll leave Oscar's forces to deal with the villagers."

"The villagers that  _we_  caused to turn into daemons!" Leo hissed. "This is all  _our_  fault!" His body trembled with emotion.

This town… these people…  _Everyone_!

"We?" She scoffed darkly. "Don't make me laugh."

She let go of the rifle. "All of this is because of me. You don't matter." She stated coldly. "If you don't want to be a part of this, don't follow me. It's that simple." Her face darkened. "All I want is to kill Artorius. I'll sacrifice the world for that end. It was high time you realized that."

Leo grasped for words, but they wouldn't come.

It was true… up until now the extent of Velvet's true nature had stayed mostly abstract to him up until this point. He'd thought it would be simple; stick with an old friend to keep their demons away. But… The things she was doing now…

He watched over Velvet's shoulder as the peaceful and friendly villagers he had met all had their lives brutally wrenched away from them. All because of the saving of a mother's only daughter. His gaze once again went to the confused girl staring around her destroyed village.

_He just didn't know what to do!_

"Fuck." Leo shook his head. "I don't know." He confessed. "I don't know yet." And he really didn't. He didn't know what was right or what was wrong. He didn't feel good at all either way. He was lost.

He met Velvet's eyes. "…I'll come with you until I figure it out for myself."

"Pathetic." She remarked derisively. "Ever the fool."

Leo gave a sigh. "Yeah… You're not wrong." He muttered, his grip on his rifle tightening hatefully.

"Enough of this." Eizen interrupted. "The exorcists are still chasing us. We need to get back to the ship."

Velvet nodded, no longer sparing Leo a glance. "Let's go."

And so, the group ran. The group ran through the destruction that they had caused.

This was the consequence of their actions; the killing of hundreds of people. This was the cost of one woman's selfish revenge. A price that had simultaneously freed a single innocent young girl from a horrifying prison.

And Leo had no idea how to feel about it all.


	27. C25 - Greater Good

**Chapter 25 – Greater Good.**

A scream rang out through the Van Eltia.

Leo cursed from his position towards the rear of the deck and ran to help. That voice definitely Kamoana's.

They were currently a few hours out from Yesult enroute to Loegres at the behest of the Bloodwing Butterflies, a gang that Velvet and the others were apparently familiar with. He knew Kamoana, Laphicet, and Eleanor had been playing together in the cabin earlier. His mind whirled with things that could've gone wrong.

Anxious, the man leapt down the stairs onto the deck. His steps slowed, however, as he neared the cabin, as he was able to discern voices through the windowed door.

"My face… It's… It's scary!" Kamoana screamed.

Leo's heart broke.  _So, the kid didn't know_. He looked through the door and found Kamoana squatting down on the floor and covering her eyes, terrified.

"I don't want to look like that! I don't want my mommy to hate me…!" The kid began to start screaming for her mommy again.

Leo watched as Eleanor distracted the therion by showing her the scar on her chest. He smiled as he watched the exorcist calm the kid down with all the grace few people could achieve.

"…You don't have to cry anymore. It'll be okay, I promise." Eleanor finished.

Leo stepped away from the door as Kamoana calmed down, crisis averted.

He let out a sigh.

What kind of monster would choose to imprison that little girl? But at the same time… what kind of monster would choose to forfeit the lives of hundreds for the sake of one?

Leo fisted his hands.

Oscar was right. He was the most reasonable one out of everyone here. Yet… he wouldn't consider himself ruled by logic. Emotions held him very much at sway. His place next to Velvet and Eleanor was proof of that much.

Reason or Emotion.

What a mess.

Leo sighed again and walked off, back to his spot towards the back of the ship to brood.

* * *

The question was… should he? Or should he not?

Leo cursed. "Goddamnit, why is it everything in my life is a dilemma now?!" He seethed to himself.

"What's that?" Leo turned to find Eleanor walking into the cabin of the Van Eltia where the man had been brooding alone.

Leo gestured towards the massive collection of alcoholic containers arrayed the far end of the cabin. "I've got all sorts of dilemmas going on. The most pressing one currently is whether or not I should drink."

Eleanor sighed in exasperation. "Leo you know how I feel about drinking." She trotted over to the bar next to him.

He shrugged. "Like I said, I like to run away. Maybe now's a good time." He made a grand gesture. "It's all just so inviting, after all."

Eleanor nodded soberly, staring out at the sunset through the windows. "...I can't say I really blame you for wanting to run away." She shook her head silently, leaning against the windowsill. "To think our world would come down to such a choice!"

"Yep." Leo grunted, plucking a bottle at random from the shelves. "That's the other dilemma on my head. I'm sure it's bothering you too." He meandered over to the door, through the window of which Kamoana and Dyle were conversing heatedly about something or another. He gave a soft laugh as he watched the girl utterly scold the bigger, scarier daemon. "The life of one over many. The greater good." Leo gave a scoff and uncorked the bottle of wine in his hands.

Eleanor nodded absent-mindedly. "Of course. I could tell what Oscar said worried you too." She shook her head. "…I'm bound to the daemon, but Leo you…" She met his gaze. "You're free to do what you want. I've come to terms with how close you and she are… but can't you see that she's changed from who you used to know?"

Leo gave a scoff. "I thought I did. But abstract knowledge is so much weaker than seeing it up front." He sighed, placing an empty wine glass carefully onto the counter before pouring a healthy portion of whatever-brand-the-pirates-had wine into it. "It's… just rough. Eleanor." He admitted. "I'm lost at sea here. I've got so many conflicting thoughts that I just can't find my way through."

Eleanor stared at the wine glass in thought. "…I… I can't either." She admitted. "What I do know is that I owe you an apology." She met Leo's eyes firmly. "You were right. All this time. The Abbey is an organization that one must be wary of."

Leo nodded disaffectedly. "Yeah. That it sure is." He shrugged. "Nonetheless, it remains to be seen if the 'lesser evil' logic applies in this situation." He re-corked the wine bottle and replaced it on the shelf.

Eleanor nodded as well. "Yeah…" She sat down at the same spot where she and Kamoana and Laphicet had talked earlier that day. Her thoughts were obviously about the child. "No matter how much I tell myself reason is the way to go… I keep thinking of Kamoana."

Leo nodded, lifting his glass and sitting down next to her. "You're good with her." He commented softly. "I overheard the moment when she saw her face for the first time."

Eleanor took out her mirror absent-mindedly and gazed at her own reflection with a conflicted expression. "She's… so human. I've come to understand that daemons… malakhim… they're all so different."

Leo studied the wine in his glass. "Things were simpler when life was black and white, huh?" He muttered sourly.

Eleanor shook her head with determination. "Simpler, yes. But not better. The truth must be faced, no matter how ugly it is."

Leo sighed. "Not if you have  _alcohol_!"

And with that, he took a nice gulp of wine. "GECK!" He choked, barely managing to keep the wine down.

Eleanor started in alarm and quickly patted Leo's back to make his coughing fit go away.

"Goddamnit!" Leo coughed. "This is some nasty shit!" He caught his breath, glaring at the liquid in the glass. "Who the hell likes wine anyways?!"

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Well, you know how I feel about drinking."

Leo eyed her sourly. He shook his head. "Well, whatever. As long as it gets the job done. Just think of it like medicine, I suppose."

Eleanor shook her head. "I will never understand you. That's like taking Sale'toma to  _give_ yourself the Corsair's Scourge."

"Oh hush, you." Leo let out good-naturedly, taking a smaller sip this time.

The two sat there in silence, simply enjoying their company being together in a sea of uncertainty.

Eleanor broke the silence with a giggle. "Oh right, Leo, I forgot to praise you for your excellent acting skills earlier today."

Leo grimaced. "Oh gods. I would appreciate if you didn't remind me. I spent  _hours_ scrubbing the salt out of my clothes."

"But you were extremely convincing!" She pointed out. "Kamoana's still convinced that you're a meanie-face that 'Hawkie' beat the stuffing out of."

He shrugged. "Well, to be fair, 'Hawkie' beats the stuffing out of me regardless of how my face is." He grinned. "But it was worth it to see that girl smiling. Hawk is such a charmer these days, honestly.  _Everybody_  likes him." He rolled his eyes in mock disdain.

Eleanor nudged him to his protest. "Everyone but you, huh?"

Leo puffed out his chest. "Of course not! I hate that disobedient mutt! How dare he insult me like so! I shall have my revenge!" He let out in an arrogant, aristocratic voice.

The praetor laughed, covering her mouth. "I think you need to drink a bit more to make that voice more convincing." She noted dryly.

The man waved her off. "I drink at my own pace. Out of necessity, of course."

"Right, because of your low tolerance." Eleanor scoffed. "Velvet is right. You're definitely the girliest person out of all of us."

Leo cringed. "Including Kamoana?!"

"Including Kamoana." Eleanor confirmed.

He hung his head in mock shame. "Oh, how I have failed in my goal in life! I don't deserve to live!"

Eleanor shook her head honestly. "No, Leo." She promised sincerely. "You really are great just the person you are." She looked off sadly into the setting sun through the windows. "If you decide to run… I'll understand."

Leo blinked suddenly at the change in tone. "What?"

Eleanor met Leo's eyes. "I got the story from Laphicet. You ran away from Velvet the first time you met by the Danann Highway, right?" She shook her head. "Furthermore, I know you, Leo. I'm frankly astounded that you've dedicated yourself this much already. But this recent development with the Malevolence…"

She sighed and stood up, walking to the other end of the cabin. "…I'm bound to Velvet, so I don't have a choice in the matter. But…" She turned around and met her student's gaze. "You're not. I wouldn't think badly of you if you were to simply decide to leave. It's like she said in Haria. You're free to do whatever you want."

"…" Leo was silent, gazing off into the distance with a furrowed brow. "Free… huh?" He muttered.

"Yes…" Eleanor agreed. "I know it would be easier for you, Leo. You told me before that you were leaving for your own home, eventually right? And that you wouldn't be coming back."

Leo met her gaze sharply.

She whispered, "…Maybe it would be better if you just left earlier."

_This was not what he wanted to hear._

Abruptly, Leo got up. "Thank you, Eleanor." He muttered. "For the choice. I'll… think about it."

With that, he quickly left the cabin, leaving the distraught woman to ponder her situation alone.

* * *

Leo perched at his usual brooding spot, this time complete with a half-full glass of wine.

Eleanor's words had triggered a flood of emotions. The usual ones.

Perhaps she was right, in a way. He had properly attached himself to this world. Too much. Way too much. He had let his wants get the better of himself.

Running away. Even Eleanor knew it by now. Leo was a coward who always ran away, in the end.

Utterly alone and with alcohol to boot, his thoughts wandered as they always did to his hateful past.

That hateful day.

* * *

He remembered what his father's lab had looked like after he'd cleaned it up by himself.

The vacuum cleaner had had to be emptied multiple times and by the end had been almost a few gallons worth of dust to be thrown out.

Years of neglect hadn't done the place any favors.

He had set it all up just like his father had done all those years ago.

Everything he had done, in fact, had mirrored what his father had done all those years ago.

Right down the project the was working on.

Obsessively.

His father never did name it, in the end, before he died.

All he had labeled the various blueprints and sketches with was with the simple name.

The Device.

Hardly intuitive, but his father was never the creative one.

No.

That had been Leo.

That had _always_  been Leo.

* * *

"Drinking alone?"

Leo was suddenly torn from his reverie by the voice of a friend. Someone he had been considering pushing away. One he wanted dearly to help but didn't know if he could in good conscience.

He didn't look over as Velvet walked over and lightly propped herself forward onto the railing beside him. He kept his eyes out towards the ocean waves, watching the moon and the stars.

It was just the two of them, again.

He knew it for a fact, without looking. He knew that behind that mask of stoicism and harshness, there was a familiar woman who was hurt to see her friend so conflicted over her actions. The two of them understood each other well enough to know what was going on in each other's minds. And Leo had finally gotten to comprehend the extend of Velvet's new self.

"…Are you really not bothered by any of this?" Leo whispered almost inaudibly into the wind.

Velvet let out a sigh. "…It's easy to do anything for me." She glanced up towards the gently flapping sails pensively. "All I have to do…" She let out a breath. "…Is imagine that bastard's sword sticking through my brother's stomach. After that,  _anything_  can happen."

Leo rested his head on his palm, idly swirling the wine around in his glass. "I… hate the man." He admitted quietly. "I hate everything he stands for. How could I not? The man killed his brother for the greater good. The man is a machine. No human should do what he did."

Velvet shook her head. "But you're not a daemon. You're bounded by feelings I don't have."

Leo met her eyes. "You mean feelings you choose to ignore, I'm sure." He shook his head, forbidding any response. "Anyways, that's not the point. Yeah. The thought of killing Artorius makes me feel… uncomfortable."

"The act or the consequences?"

"The consequences." Leo muttered. "I've killed plenty of people." He admitted honestly. "I'm sure you've figured that out by now that I kill when I have to."

Velvet nodded slowly. "You always came across as that sort of jaded individual. One who had seen much and done even more." She shook her head. "And yet you still have a heart of gold."

Leo scoffed. "That might change, with this. Man, you just had to spring this whole dilemma onto me, didn't you?"

"Hey, don't look at me. I didn't ask for any of this." Velvet muttered.

Leo let out a light laugh. "Nobody asks for this. This is just how life is. These questions come, and you just have to choose what you think is right."

Velvet looked at him in surprise. "So, you'll be choosing?"

The man sighed in frustration.

Apparently, everyone saw him as the one who always ran away.

The coward.

Suddenly, Leonex Davidson drew his right hand back.

With all his might, he chucked the glass of wine overboard, letting it splash softly down in the void below.

That was his answer.

He turned to the daemon. "I'm not running." He stated firmly. "I've made that decision and I'm sticking with it."

Velvet seemed taken aback by Leo's statement. "…Well. You've changed." She muttered in surprise.

Leo hopped gently onto the rail and counted off on his fingers. "I ran away from you and Laphi at Aball. I regretted it. I ran away from you and your battle with the Abbey. I regretted it." He grinned wryly. "Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Fool me three times…"

Velvet finished, "…and I chuck a good glass of wine off the side of a ship?" She pointed out dryly.

"To be fair," Leo shrugged. "That wine tasted like  _ass_."

Velvet smiled. "And what alcohol doesn't taste like 'ass' to you?"

"…I shall concede the point." Leo grinned.

The two of them returned to their spots on the railing, simply taking in the sights of the ocean.

In the dead silence, Velvet whispered, "If that's the case, you need to commit, Leo." She sighed. "What are you willing to do to help me?"

Leo had no answer for her.

She shook her head. "I won't bring you along doing something you think is wrong. You don't deserve to suffer through that."

Velvet stood, pushing herself from the railing. She turned to walk away.

"If you're going to choose," she said over her shoulder, "then choose. You can't have any regrets when you do."

Her fists curled. "You can't." She breathed.

With that, she walked off, leaving her friend standing there, alone.

The wind howled. And then all of a sudden, Leo found himself desperately wishing he still had some more alcohol in his hands. He sighed.


	28. C26 - Reputation

**Chapter 26 – Reputation.**

Leo stepped into the empty inn lobby with soft eyes.

So much had happened since he had last left this inn. To think that it had only been a month or two ago that he'd said goodbye to Eleanor here. That had been the same time when she had warned him of the red-clawed daemon and had told him to kill it at all costs.

Things were all so different now.

He gazed around. The innkeeper was out right now according to a sign on the desk and would be back momentarily. The rest of the lobby was utterly silent and desolate. On instinct, the man reached inside his coat and felt for his inn room key perfunctorily hidden in his pocket. He'd forgotten to give it back when he had left. That was just like him. He shook his head in bemusement.

The group had arrived in Loegres an hour ago and had been headed to a place to meet up with the head of the Bloodwings. On the way, Leo had decided on a whim to stop by and say hello to his old acquaintance. He'd join up with the rest of the group later.

"Leo!"

The man turned with a smile towards the innkeeper's familiar voice as she entered the lobby from the service rooms. "Hey Dana! How's it been?" He grinned.

His grin faltered when he saw Dana's wide eyes.

The innkeeper found her voice. "It's been a while. W-would you like a room?" She caught her breath. "Your old room is actually available right now!"

"Huh!" Leo commented lightly. "That's nice to know. But that won't be necessary; I'm just here to say hello." He grinned amicably. "I'm not in town for long." He eyed her carefully for a reaction.

Just as he'd thought, those eyes widened perceptibly at the information. She really wasn't good at this.

Dana stammered, "O-oh! Well…" She was at a loss for words for a moment. "Hello!" she beamed a stiff smile. "What have you been up to? Been doing Abbey work still?" Her eyes kept darting around.

Leo shrugged, walking up to the desk and leaning forward conversationally. "Well, I left the Abbey about a month ago, actually. Right when I left town." He shifted on his feet. "I've just been travelling all of the world, really. I've met some interesting characters along the way." He grinned. "It hasn't been boring, I can say that much."

Dana blinked. "Oh! Interesting characters, you say?" She fidgeted with her hands. "Do tell! What are they like?"

Leo put a finger up to his lips in thought. "Well... Let's say they're a little rough around the edges." He sighed. "Sometimes I'm not even sure I should be travelling with them." He looked away. "The things they do sometimes... The path they've chosen. I'm... not sure I want to follow them down it."

"…Then why do you?" Dana asked quietly.

The man sighed. "They're… important to me. Friends, I suppose." He shrugged. "What matters is that when I'm with them, I feel at home. I feel like I belong."

The innkeeper blinked. "I suppose... that's good to hear, Leo. I'm glad to hear you've finally found somewhere you feel right in. Innominat knows you weren't completely happy staying in this wreck." She waved a hand gesturing to the inn around her.

Leo chuckled. "Come on, don't be like that Dana. I really liked this place." He grinned. "Besides, it was always nice having you around to pick on Bienfu."

Dana's smile grew rigid. "That's right! Have you seen Miss Eleanor recently? I haven't seen her in months."

Leo shook his head. "I haven't seen Eleanor in months either. I'm pretty sure she's still working with the Abbey." He eyed her closely.

 _Ah. There it is._ Leo thought grimly as he saw the flash of confusion in the innkeeper's face.

Dana shook her head. "That's a shame. I would've loved to talk to her." She met Leo's gaze, "Say, what are you doing in Loegres then, if you're travelling so much? Are the people you're travelling with here as well?"

Leo noted the brief tremble in the innkeeper's stance.

He nodded. "Yep. They're headed somewhere else right now, and I'm going to join up with them later." He shrugged. "We've got some business in town, but I expect it won't take us long. We'll be out of here in a few hours, most likely."

"O-oh! Is that so?" Dana abruptly exclaimed. "Well, I'm glad you came here to say hello, Leo! It was nice seeing your face again." She took a few steps away from the counter.

Leo blinked. "Got somewhere to be, Dana?"

The innkeeper nodded hurriedly. "Yes, that's right. I'm sorry I can't stay Leo, but I just remembered I have something I need to take care of at the moment." She went around the front desk and made way towards the front door. "I'll see you later, Leo!"

"Dana. If you take one more step, I swear you're going to get hurt."

The innkeeper froze in terror.

"Turn around. Keep your hands where I can see them."

Trembling, the woman obeyed the command, turning around to see the wanted man holding her hostage with that strange weapon of his.

Leo's eyes were cold. "So, what has the Abbey said about me, then?" He asked casually.

"P-please..." Dana pleaded, clearly terrified. "Don't kill me..."

"Answer the question."

Dana's breath hitched. "The... the Abbey told me everything." She sniffed. "They told me how you betrayed them! You and Eleanor!" She shook her head in disbelief. "I could barely believe it! To think you two would side with those monsters!" Her body trembled with emotion. "All those years you spent living here... to think you were a monster yourself!"

Leo sighed. Of course. "What else?" He prompted harshly.

Dana swallowed. "They told me all of it! That you're consorting with the daemons that raided Hellawes and sacked Vortigern!" Her desperation seemed to melt in the face of her anger. "You know my family lives in Hellawes! How dare you carelessly ignore their suffering and be 'friends' with the very daemons who ruined their lives?!" She took an angry step forward. "You bastard!"

The rifle safety clicked off. "Don't move." Leo reminded her sharply.

Cowed, the fight instantly left Dana. "...That's all I know." She hung her head, sobbing. "I swear. The Abbey told me to let them know the moment I saw you... That's all please... Don't... Don't kill me..." she whimpered to the floor.

Leo sighed in resignation. "...Hawk." He muttered aloud.

"...Huh?"

With a flash of green, Leo's malak appeared and cast an arte at the stationary innkeeper. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head as she collapsed onto the floor of her inn, her expression one of clear shock.

Leo let out a breath. "...Fuck." He muttered, lowering his gun.

BANG!

He kicked the lobby desk in anger, ignoring the sharp sting of pain in response. " _Why_  does it have to be like this?!" He yelled through gritted teeth.

Hawk whined in worry for his master.

Leo shook his head harshly, his eyes falling on the unconscious innkeeper in the middle of the lobby. He let out another sigh.

The man left the inn a few minutes later, having locked the innkeeper in his old room. She wouldn't be found until the next morning when the maids arrived for their next shift. By then, the group would've been long gone out of Loegres.

He smirked humorlessly.

On the bright side, he had finally returned his room key.

* * *

"..." Leo's eye twitched the moment he stepped into the Bloodwing Butterfly Bar. His eyes drank the absurd scene in.

Everyone was there, except for Eleanor and Laphicet whom Leo had met outside. Apparently, they had figured it was a bad idea for an exorcist to know the face of the head of the notorious shadow organization that had hounded the Abbey ever since its inception.

...Said head of the infamous organization being a familiar head with graying hair and wrinkled skin and a kind smile.

"You've gotta be kidding me." Leo muttered.

The lynchpin of the most notorious criminal network in the entire world, Tabatha, gave the man a happy smile. "Leo." She greeted warmly. "It's been awhile! How was your friend Dana?"

Leo blinked. His gaze turned to Velvet who was standing across the bar from the barkeep. "You tell her where I went?"

Velvet shook her head and shrugged. "You get used to it." She said simply as a means of explanation.

Rokurou laughed. "We did warn you, didn't we? The Bloodwings know everything that goes on in this town."

The old woman laughed genially. "Naturally." She gestured to the bar. "Please, Leo. Take a load off. I'm sure meeting the innkeep was an unpleasant experience."

Leo blinked a few more times before sighing in resignation.

"...Yeah it was." He trotted over to the stool and slumped into the seat comfortably. "Although I'm sure you know full well how that went, Tabatha." He shook his head in disbelief. "To think all this time, I just thought you as a wise old woman who knew what I liked to drink."

The old lady nodded genially. "Well, none of that information is particularly wrong, if not simply lacking in depth." She smiled knowingly. "The usual this time as well?"

Leo shook his head again. "And here I always thought you just had some sort of sixth sense for knowing exactly when I would want a drink. Now it all makes sense." He nodded, pulling out the usual amount of gald. "The usual if you would, Tabatha." He grinned in familiarity.

"Gladly." The woman smiled and reached under the bar.

Velvet asked curiously, "I'm assuming this meeting with your friend at the inn didn't go well?"

Leo scoffed, picking up the shot glass. "Apparently, I'm now considered a monster. I guess I've been hanging out with the wrong crowd." He huffed. "She was about to report me to the Abbey when I knocked her out and locked up." He knocked the shot back with a sigh, the alcohol burning familiarly and warmly down his throat.

Velvet hmphed disaffectedly. "Don't say I didn't warn you."

Magilou grinned. "Don't feel down, Leo-poo! Enjoy it!" She chirped. "Some people spend their whole lives dreaming of being as hated as we are today." She patted the man happily. "I'd wager you're not really part of Velvet's Vengeful Villains until you've been cursed for existing... oh... I don't know... 12 times a day?"

Rokurou laughed. "Try 15. That's a nice round number."

Eizen shrugged. "Please. I've lost count how many times I've been cursed at by enemies through the years."

Velvet asked wryly, "Are we talking only humans or are we including daemons and malakhim?"

"Doesn't matter."

The therion scoffed. "Either way, you're not the most wanted criminal in the kingdom. There's that."

Eizen waved her off. "In terms of notoriety, I'd argue that being infamous for years on end beats the brief and sudden infamy."

Leo rolled his eyes. "Gee, you guys are being real helpful, you know that?" He muttered sardonically.

The man swiveled in his chair to face the group. "So." He piped up, raising an eyebrow. "Who's that?" He pointed at the suspicious stranger sitting conspicuously at the end of the bar.

"He's a guest." Velvet explained. "We've been tasked with smuggling him out of Loegres and to a safe location in exchange for information on the therions."

Leo blinked. "Huh. Did you have a place in mind?"

"We've decided on Titania." Eizen explained. "Apparently, there hasn't been contact with the island ever since the riot broke out."

Leo glanced at Velvet. "The riot that you instigated to escape, correct?" He met her eyes. "Are you okay going back there?"

Velvet waved a dismissive hand. "It doesn't bother me. If it's really a suitable hideout, then I'll take it without complaint."

Leo shrugged. "If you're fine with it." He turned back to the bar and placed his empty cup on the bar. He observed the stranger carefully, taking in the hawk perched docilely on his arm with surprise. "Fearsome bird." He commented.

The stranger was silent.

Leo shrugged and then sighed, feeling the buzz of the alcohol settle in.

"…How the hell do you get used to being the bad guy?" He muttered sourly, the terror on Dana's face still fresh in his mind.

Rokurou, at his seat behind Leo, put it simply, "You just accept it." The swordsman shrugged. "Although I'm a daemon. I don't feel shame at all, so take my words with a grain of salt."

Magilou put a finger to her temple. "Bad guy, good guy; it's all relative. What matters is what you yourself consider yourself to be." she grinned darkly. "In the end, we all die alone of course. All that matters is that  _you're_  comfortable with what you've done."

Velvet deadpanned in the witch's direction. "So, which do you consider yourself then?"

The self-declared sorceress shrugged. "What do I consider myself indeed!"

"That doesn't answer anything." Velvet muttered, irritated.

The witch shrugged. "The better question is what does Leo thinks of himself!"

The man in question grunted. "Well, actually, I'll have you know I consider myself to be the worst of the worst." He muttered sarcastically. "I like to tear babes from mother's breasts on weekends." He did a mock strangle motion in the air. "I also asphyxiate helpless little kittens and step on ducklings whenever I can."

Magilou grinned. "Oh! Well if that's the case I'd say you  _might_ be qualified to join us. Perhaps if you've done enough community disservice I'd say the position is yours!" She concluded cheerily.

Leo just plonked his forehead onto the bar in response. "Yay." He deadpanned.

Eizen grunted. "The heart of the matter is that what other people think of you doesn't matter." Leo raised his head and met his eyes. The man continued seriously, "Do what you think is right. That's all."

"…Steer your own ship, yeah?" Leo muttered contemplatively.

Velvet, walking over from the front of the store, interrupted, "Alright. It's dark enough. Let's head out."

Leo got up abruptly in response. "Whoo! Alright!" He whooped, swaying with the drink in his blood. "Let's go strangle some kittens!" He cried with his arm held up high in a battle pose.

Velvet promptly steadied the wobbling man with exasperation. "There will be no strangling of kittens." She glared at the man. "We're just going to do our job. Shut up and sober up." She pressed a cup of water in his hands and forced him to drink it.

"Awe!" Magilou pouted. "But I can think of a cat malak or two I'd love to get overly friendly with!"

Bienfu suddenly popped up. "BIEEEEN! SAVE ME!" He cried in vain as the witch mock-strangled her malak.

Leo chuckled drunkenly.

* * *

The moon was high in the sky as the group of strangely clothed individuals sauntered through the streets of Loegres towards the entrance. Leo took a glance back at their current VIP, the heavily clothed individual with the hawk.

"So... Eleanor." He muttered as he trotted alongside the exorcist, having sobered up somewhat ever since they had left the bar. "I'm not the only one who smells that, right?"

Eleanor nodded softly. "Keep it quiet. We'll bring it up once we're out of enemy territory."

"Enemy territory, huh?" Leo muttered. "Surprised you didn't just up and leave us with the headquarters being right where they are."

Eleanor shook her head. "...I... The thought had crossed my mind." She admitted in a soft whisper. "But... It's like you said, Leo. I... I'm not too sure about my own goals now either."

Leo nodded wordlessly. Oh, he knew the feeling alright.

The rest of the group continued onwards towards the main thoroughfares, the streets utterly deserted, save for the occasional torch-wielding army patrol eyeing the group suspiciously.

"...Dana." He muttered, breaking the silence. "The innkeep. I saw her earlier today."

Eleanor blinked. "That's right! How was she?"

"You know." Leo sighed. "She accused me of being a monster, tried to sell me out to the Abbey, and begged for me not to kill her when that didn't work out for her."

"She did WHAT?!" Eleanor gasped in horror.

Leo nodded grimly. "I knocked her out and locked her up in my old room." He sighed. "The Abbey had turned her against me in a heartbeat."

Eleanor was at a loss for words. "...Her parents live in Hellawes, don't they?" She remembered the obscure detail.

The pseudo-exorcist nodded. "Yep." He sighed. "I've apparently been consorting with the monster that had ruined their lives. It... was a bit unsettling." He admitted.

"I can imagine…" Eleanor shook her head. "I know how you feel Leo. Going from a respected individual to being accused of such horrible things that you don't deserve..."

Leo sighed. "But I do, though. I fully condoned the actions of Velvet, with my own free will." His eyes travelled down length the road. "I suppose it was just the seas I decided to travel. I can't really complain about that."

Eleanor had nothing to say to that.

The silence returned, both of them thinking heavy thoughts about their own respective dilemmas.

"All of you! Stop moving!"

Everyone slowed guardedly to a halt as a cloaked man walked out of a nearby alleyway to stand in their way. The man had a dark mask on his face and a shining dagger in hand. All around them, men with similar masks and weaponry appeared out of the shadows to surround the group. There must've been 20 or so men.

The man who had spoken first, evidently the leader, shouted arrogantly out to the group. "This is a robbery. Lay down yer valuables now, and we  _might_ let you live."

"..." Silence. Everyone stared at the man in utter befuddlement.

The man grew impatient. "Are y'all deaf or sumthi'n? Drop yer goods, NOW!" He raised his dagger threateningly.

"...HAHAHA!" The tense silence was broken abruptly by Magilou's cackling laughter. "Oh this is too good! HAH!" She held her sides.

"Hold on there Miss Magilou!" Bienfu cried. "Take deep breaths!"

To the astonishment of the bandits, Leo began barking with slightly drunken laughter as well. "You've gotta be fucking kidding me!"

Hawk did a few circles around his master in sympathetic amusement.

Laphicet gave a nervous chuckle.

Rokurou and Eizen exchanged evil grins.

Eleanor looked righteously furious.

Velvet sighed in annoyance. "We're with the Bloodwings." She gritted out. "Move or else."

The leader, despite being taken aback by the obvious cockiness of the group he had decided to assault, rallied valiantly. "Bloodwings?! Those amateurs?" He scoffed. "Hah! Like we give a damn about no Bloodwings right fellas?!"

The bandits all around the group exchanged wary glances.

The leader rolled his eyes. "It doesn't matter. We'll swipe yer valuables now and rash it out with them Bloodwings later." He raised his dagger. "Now! For the last time! Drop yer stuff before we have to poke it out of you!"

Velvet sighed. "Don't say I didn't warn you." Her eyes narrowed. "You picked the wrong group to rob. NOW!"

At the call, the group burst into motion. Shrieks of pain and horror echoed throughout the capital, providing fuel for ghost stories that would be passed down for generations.

The leader crashed down on the cobblestones in pain, gasping in horror as his crew was casually defeated around him.

There was a woman wearing a ridiculous pink outfit casually expelling  _malak artes_  like an exorcist, disabling bandits with flicks of her fingers.

There was a man with a gauntlet sword who was also expelling malak artes alongside easy swordplay against his comparatively  _amateur_ followers, knocking them out with ease.

There was a child who  _was taking down his crew_ with malak artes.

There was a man with dual short swords who wasn't even bothering to kill his opponents, instead simply slipping expertly into their guards and knocking them out with his sword handles.

There was another man who was brawling groups of his guys at once and taking them all out with well-placed roundhouse kicks.

There was a woman who the leader only now recognized in the moonlight as wearing an exorcist uniform beating his guys with a spear in righteous fury.

And then there was that other woman... No. Not a woman.

That  _monster_.

"P-Please!" The leader stammered, dropping his useless dagger and backpedaling on his hands and rear until his back hit a wall. "I-I'm sorry!" He choked out.

His eyes trembled in pure terror as he beheld the daemon in the moonlight. A monster with a giant red claw extruding from the body of a callous woman. Her voice was deceptively human. "I warned you." She said coldly. And then she swept out with a vicious kick and knocked the man clean out.

Velvet sighed in irritation as she turned her gaze over her shoulder. The rest of the idiot bandits were either running for their lives or on the ground unconscious. This had made far too much commotion. Most likely the guards were already on their way in force.

Leo grinned as he waved a man off and let him run away with his tail between his legs. He inadvertently met Velvet's eyes. "Well." He remarked dryly. "Never a dull moment around you guys, at the very least." With a click, his gauntlet blade retracted into its sheath.

Rokurou sighed as he sheathed his blades untouched by blood. "Tsk. I won't improve by fighting weaklings."

Eizen grunted, punching a man straight into the wall across the road. "I can't even call that a fight." He let out roughly.

Eleanor nodded. "Nonetheless, a complete victory." She slammed her spear pole onto a man groaning on the ground firmly. "How dare you scum try and prey on others! Aren't times hard enough without you people resorting to such selfish acts?!" She roared at the knocked-out man.

Magilou put her hands casually on the back of her head. "They can't hear you, you know. They're too busy being completely unconscious." She grinned down evilly at a man on the floor. "Isn't that right?"

The fallen bandit stammered, "U-uh right ma'am! Er- I mean-!" The man's head promptly dropped to the floor as he fearfully played dead for his life.

Laphicet blinked. He glanced over at the hooded figure he'd been protecting during the fight. "I thought they might've been going for him."

Velvet shook her head, trotting over. "Nope. Just bad luck."

She kicked at the man playing dead, making him truly unconscious.

"For them." She finished roughly. "Come on. Let's go."

Leo grinned as he sheathed his sword and followed the rest of the group. "You know, no matter how many ethical dilemmas I'm stuck in, I have to say there is nothing better than watching you guys kick the asses of eviler people than you."

Eleanor gave her own smile, putting away her spear. "I suppose you have a point."

Velvet rolled her eyes.

Together the nefarious group walked away from the collection of unconscious bandits on the streets of Loegres proper, leaving quite the sight for the early-morning risers.

Rumors of daring vigilantes and selfless heroes would plague the townspeople for months.


	29. C27 - Hellhole

**Chapter 27 - Hellhole.**

Kamoana giggled again, once again beginning the same trick she had done dozens of times already. Despite this, her own obvious amusement was infectiously eliciting many a grin from the onlooking pirates as the Van Eltia sailed to Titania from Port Zekson.

"Hawky! Grawky! Fetch!" She cried, throwing a stick into the air off the port side of the Van Eltia.

'Hawky' and 'Grawky' immediately burst into motion at the call. In a manner of speaking, at least; Hawk was the one who actually began running from his position at the opposite end of the ship. Griffin, gently clutching the wolf's back with his talons, merely lowered his head in tandem with the charge.

As the wolf neared the railing of the ship, the hawk suddenly burst into motion, using the wolf's momentum to instantly gain flight with a sharp spread of his wings. The bird managed to create just enough lift to clear the railing and dive down towards the falling stick nearing the waters below. Just before the stick hit the water, Griffin swiped it effortlessly out of the air as he pulled up from his dive with a victorious caw.

"Yaaay!" Kamoana cheered, giggling and jumping ecstatically in place as the hawk circled around the ship with the stick clutched firmly in its talons.

Hawk barked excitedly in sync with the girl's chanting.

"Again! Again!" Kamoana begged. Both Hawk and hawk were happy to oblige.

Leo couldn't've stopped himself from smiling even if he'd wanted to.

He glanced over at his acquaintance whom was also watching the three play with a soft smile from the upper deck of the ship. "Never seen your ''Grawky' do something like that, eh prince?" Leo asked with a smile.

Prince Percival Asgard the Third, the man whom had revealed himself as the VIP that Tabatha had wanted them to smuggle, shook his head gently.

His joy was obvious as he watched the hawk soar free. "No, Leo. I can't say that I have." The prince breathed as he met the former pseudo-exorcist's eyes. "I'm glad you share my sentiment. Wild animals like those two were not meant to be chained and caged. I appreciate your decision to leave Hawk with his free will." He stated with a respectful, regal nod.

Leo waved him off wryly. "Hawk's my friend. If I'd sealed his free will away, I'd feel as if I was chaining myself as well." He grinned as the two hawks achieved another successful fetch, even with a stick thrown farther by Dyle whom Kamoana had 'persuaded' to help.

"…Some things in life just don't deserve to be caged." He shrugged.

The prince nodded, deep in thought. "I agree completely." The prince trailed off.

Leo suddenly winced as a panicked animal yelp rang through the air. He watched as Hawk underestimated his velocity and, despite skidding furiously in a vain attempt to stop, slid right under a section of arched railing and plummeted off the deck of the Van Eltia with a howl.

SPLASH!

"Hawky!?" Kamoana cried out in horror.

Griffin banked down in a low orbit around the splash area as Hawk's tiny head surfaced unhappily to the surface with a yip, the wolf padding water petulantly. Griffin promptly came to a landing on top Hawk's drenched head to the pup's dismay, adding to the weight and making him paddle furiously.

Leo barked out a laugh as he and the prince ran down the stairs, joining the rest of the crew watching the malak in the water. He grinned and nudged the prince jokingly. "On the other hand, some things in life do genuinely belong in a cage. For their own safety." He commented dryly.

The prince gave a laugh. He put his fingers in his mouth and whistled sharply, startling the crew. He received a caw in response. Promptly, the bird took flight off Hawk's floating head and pitched itself onto the prince's arm happily, giving the man a playful nudge on his cheek.

Shaking his head in amusement, Leo yelled out to his own pet. "Hawk! Quit pretending to be a fish and get your butt back on the ship!"

The wolf stuck his mouth out at his master before promptly disappearing in a flash of green, returning at Leo's side, dripping wet. He then promptly proceeded to violently shake his fur, sending a spray of water to all those in his vicinity to their collective dismay.

Kamoana giggled at the sight of the grumbling Leo as he wiped the seawater off his face and gave his wolf a good-natured cuff on the head. "Filthy mutt." Leo muttered. He stood up and beckoned the wolf towards the cabin. "Come on you. Bath time."

Hawk growled defensively.

Laphicet helped Leo out, trotting up to the wolf. "Come on, Hawk. He's right you know. It's a good idea to clean yourself after you swim in the ocean. Besides! You'll feel so much cleaner afterwards!" He gave the wolf a pat on the head.

Hawk whined helplessly and reluctantly trotted up to Leo obediently.

Leo sighed. "Honestly. I swear you should have Laphicet be your master. What am I, chopped liver at this point?"

Griffin cocked his head. "Wreee?" He squawked.

Leo glared at the bird. "No. No, I am not food. Hush." He turned back and shooed his wolf towards the deck hatch.

Velvet shook her head in exasperation as Leo and Hawk badgered each other below deck, bickering like a married couple. That was if said couple consisted of a participant that could only respond in yips and growls.

"A right sight we are." She muttered to herself.

Laphicet giggled. "I'll say."

"Grawky!" Laphicet and Velvet turned to the sound of Kamoana yelling at the Prince's hawk. "Since Hawk's not here, let's play tag! Dyle! You're it!"

"H-Hey! Wait just a minute! I didn't agree to this!" The poor lizard daemon cried in protest.

"Go Grawky!" Kamoana cheered delightfully. The hawk let out a cry and took off from the prince's arm, circling the ship in a deadly hunting pattern with Dyle at the center. The hawk let out a predatory cry as he dived for his prey.

"AHHHHH!" Dyle screamed as he ran for his life from the apex predator.

Velvet sighed as a large thump echoed through the deck. "There goes his tail again." She muttered in exasperation.

Laphicet laughed.

* * *

Leo glanced around warily as the group trekked deeper into the depths of the ominous dungeon. Everywhere he looked he thought he could see movement in the dimly lit tunnels. The ominous warning the dying exorcist had given them when they had entered the prison wasn't helping either.

"The headless knight is back." He pondered aloud if only to break the never-wracking silence. "Headless knight..." He shook his head in confusion. "Back? But why back? Where'd he  _go_? This is a prison island after all?"

Walking alongside him, Velvet shrugged. "Who knows." She remarked lightly. "Whatever it is, we'll have to take care of it." Her eyes narrowed. "It and every single other daemon on this island needs to be exterminated for good if we're to make this place our base."

Leo began salivating at the mere thought. "A secret base… man... That sounds fucking awesome!" He grinned. "Think about it! Think of how nice this place could be for us!"

Eleanor shook her head in exasperation. "Is that really what you should be focusing on at this moment?" She berated. "We've already come into contact with dozens of daemons lurking about. Keep your wits about you."

Rokurou nodded. "And strong ones, too." He grinned happily. "I can't wait to fight that headless knight, if he is really the product of venomization! If he's the strongest daemon on this island, I say bring it on."

Eizen grunted. "Is that really what you should be focusing on at this moment?"

Laphicet glanced over at Hawk, trotting alertly next to him. "Smell anything Hawk?" he asked as the wolf suddenly perked its ears. The group stopped and waited as the malak gingerly tasted the air for confirmation. There was an affirming growl as the pup began to edge aggressively forward down the hallway.

Everyone drew their weapons and proceeded to follow the wolf warily.

"The tension drew so thick," Magilou whispered dramatically, "one could cut it with a knife! Or swing it with a cane! Or bash it with a box!"

"I'll bash you with a box if you don't shut up." Velvet growled.

"Shut it, both of you." Leo hissed as he registered the clanking sounds up ahead. He clicked the safety off on his rifle. "I'll be using improvised scattershot rounds. Keep your distance." He warned the rest of the group.

Eizen nodded. "Try not to blow yourself up."

"I'll  _try_." Leo stressed. "Try being the operative word. If I do blow myself up, make sure you throw me a good funeral."

"If there's anything left of you." The reaper agreed readily.

Leo took point, glancing around the final corner behind which originated the clanking noises. He leaned to the left, making sure his profile was as small as possible and aimed his rifle at the scene.

"Hey guys?" Leo muttered, taking in the number of daemons in the room down the hallway. "I think we've hit gold."

"Why gold?" Magilou whispered back. "Why not any other precious metal? Gold is so last century."

"Hush." Velvet muttered. "Leo. Elaborate."

The man in question drew back from behind the corner. He explained seriously, "There's a headless armored daemon battling a group of wolf head daemons. 1 versus 5."

Rokurou grinned happily.

Eizen, running the information through his head, nodded. "Alright. Let's go." He pointed. "Laphicet, Magilou. You two are on support and offensive arte duty. Eleanor, you're protecting them. Leo and I will go pick out the offensive witches. And Velvet and Rokurou... go nuts on the headless daemon."

Rokurou's grin widened savagely. "Alright!"

Leo nodded. "Alright. Let's go!" He pumped his fist eagerly in the air.

The clamor beyond the corner stopped.

Eleanor facepalmed. "Leo. You're an idiot."

With a groan, Leo turned the corner and opened fire on the mass of daemons forgetting their internal quarrels and charging the island invaders.

CA-CRACK!

CA-CRACK!

The powerful shots connected with the headless ironclad daemon and hurled it staggering back with the impact, causing it to run into the ghost daemons and stop their charge.

"Go!" Leo roared, cocking his rifle.

As one, the group charged forwards, meeting the daemons with devastating artes of their own. Together they pushed the group of daemons back into the chamber down the hall.

CA-CRACK!

The shot missed, pinging off the wall of the prison and sending flakes of stone showering to the floor. Leo cursed and dodged a charging wolf head, its malevolent energy washing over him.

"Leo! Duck!" Velvet yelled as she swung her claw overhead.

"Goose!" Leo replied sarcastically as he rolled under her claw as it flew and intercepted the charging daemon, sending it flying into the wall with vicious force. He recovered and cocked his rifle. With a precise snap of his finger, he fired his rifle from his crouched position.

CA-CRACK!

The shot pinned the daemon into the wall with a healthy helping of metal bbs, killing it on the spot.

"Reloading!" He called over the clamor.

Four more bullets found their way into the weapon as Leo managed to reload. He took a good look around.

He blinked.

"Really?" He asked the rest of his group.

The rest of the group collectively shrugged, the battle having been concluded with Leo's last shot.

"That guy was pathetic!" Rokurou complained derisively. "He didn't even last as long as the rest of the ghosts!"

Laphicet cocked his head. "Was that daemon really the result of venomization? He didn't seem that strong..."

Velvet shrugged. "Who knows. He lacked a head. I'm sure I can say the same for a lot of daemons. Kurogane included."

Eizen chuckled. "You're not wrong. Come. Let's keep sweeping."

The rest of the group nodded, turning as one towards the depths of the prison.

"…Kamoana?!" Eleanor cried out suddenly, her entire body rigid for no apparent reason.

Magilou blinked as she turned to the woman. "What? You cracked or something?"

Eleanor shook her head. "We need to go back. Please!"

Leo looked to Velvet. "If she says so, I say we go back. An extra sweep of the part of the already explored prison wouldn't go amiss either way."

Velvet nodded. "If you say so. Let's go, just to be sure then."

The group ran back the way they came, Eleanor anxiously leading the charge.

* * *

"He chose his bird over the entire world..." Magilou muttered in amazement.

Leo stared in disbelief as the giant flying therion that had saved Kamoana's life by eating the headless horseman's corpse transformed back into the familiar form of Griffin and landed placidly on the Prince's arm.

The Prince that had taken him away from Loegres, knowing full well what it would mean for the citizens.

He was at an utter loss for words. He didn't even know how to look at the prince now. Just as much as he didn't know how to look at Velvet. It just went against reason to take the bird away.

But the bird...

"Tell me." Velvet asked abruptly. "Why is it you think that birds fly?"

Leo and Eleanor both blinked in surprise.

The Prince considered the question seriously. "...I think birds fly because they want to fly. A bird without wings is no bird at all." He intoned simply, watching as his hawk circled around the chamber. He turned to Leo. "I think Leo put it best. Some things in life simply don't deserve to be caged." He met the man's eyes, unyieldingly stout in his decision, regardless of his judgement.

"I simply believed that Griffin fell into that category. That is all." He finished.

Velvet sighed. "…I understand." She waved a hand. "As long as you don't leave the island, you're free to do as you please. But if you try to escape, I'll kill you." She put mildly.

Percival nodded. "Thank you for allowing Griffin and I to stay."

As Eleanor comforted Kamoana and the prince let his hawk go free in the chamber, Leo simply sat down in a corner, shell-shocked by the prince's decision.

In a way... he supposed he was envious to a degree.

The prince had chosen his heading to sail in and was unyielding in his determination. He had chosen beyond all doubt the way of emotion. He had led a life of reason and yet despite all of his teacher's teachings and his stout dedication to his people... he had made his own choice for the first time in his life.

Leo wondered if he would ever manage to choose.

"Crazy prince, huh?" Magilou dropped down next to Leo, grinning slyly.

Leo grunted, watching the man gazing at his circling hawk. "…I'll say." He muttered quietly.

"I wonder what you'll pick, yourself." She eyed him meaningfully. "The prince chose a friend over the entire world, that is." The witch pointed out. "I'm curious as to what  _you'll_  do." She grinned slyly.

Leo glared at her. "Hush. Yes. I get that. Don't you have a malak to torture or something?" He grated irritably.

"My, my, someone's in the bad mood!" The witch exclaimed.

Her eyes narrowed. "Choose wisely, Leo." She intoned seriously. "Wouldn't want things to get boring around here, wouldn't we?"

The man eyed the witch. "Boring?" He scoffed. "It's hardly  _ever_  boring even without my presence, in case you haven't noticed." He gestured all around them; pointing at the fact that they were in the middle of clearing a prison island to use for their base of operations against the world itself.

Magilou casually stretched. "You're not wrong." She shrugged. "I suppose you just… bring a bit more spice into the mix. A sort of rogue flavor that doesn't belong if you catch my drift."

"I don't."

Magilou leapt up from the ground, shaking her head in disappointment. "Oh poo. Well, I suppose I should get going then. I'm clearly unappreciated here!"

Leo sent a grin up at her. "Yep. Completely accurate statement."

"Hmph!" The witch strutted off, evidently choosing Kamoana and Laphicet as targets to pick on.

Leo shook his head in disbelief. A friend or the world, huh?

* * *

The depths of Titania were a frightening place. Leo never particularly had a problem with claustrophobia, but even he was feeling uncomfortable at the current moment.

"...The stairs just keep going." Leo muttered lowly, breaking the monotonous impacts of the group's footfalls on the steps.

Laphicet agreed. "Yeah..."

The deeper one went, the hazier the air got.

Rokurou shrugged. "At least it means our job is almost over."

Eleanor nodded. "It would seem that way." She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "According to the blueprints of the fort we found earlier, these stairs should lead to the lowest floor. There we'll find the highest security cell in the prison. And once we clear that out, we'll have claimed the island for ourselves!"

Eizen grunted. "...The malevolence is getting thicker the deeper we get."

"So, plenty of food for our pet therions, I would imagine." Magilou pointed out.

As the rest of the group continued to discuss future plans for the fort, Leo noticed Velvet staying conspicuously silent; even more so than normal. He expedited his steps and caught up with her.

"...You alright?" Leo asked softly, walking alongside the woman.

Velvet nodded. "I'm fine."

"If you say so..." Leo muttered, slowing down and letting the woman stay ahead of the group.

The rest of the way down was done so in silence.

When the stairs and corners finally ended, the group was met with an antidramatic sight. All that awaited them was a small collection of holding cells and a well-oiled grate on the floor.

"...Huh." Rokurou scratched the back of his head. "I guess that's it then." He was clearly disappointed.

Magilou sighed. "Lemme guess. There's no magic teleporting arte here that'll take us all those hundreds of flights of stairs we just went down, is there."

Laphicet laughed. "I guess not."

The witch fell to the ground in horror. "This is it. This is the end! I was lucky the first time around, but this time there's no escaping Titania for Magilou!"

"Don't be dramatic. Come on, get up." Leo grunted, pulling the rifle from his shoulder and stepping forward. "We need to double-check the cells."

"Right." Eleanor agreed, stepping forward alongside the man.

The group did just that, checking each cell carefully for any traces of monsters.

"Ah!" Laphicet suddenly called out. "I feel something again! Another earthpulse point!"

Eizen nodded. "I felt it too. It's close." He looked around. "...But where could it be?" His eyes caught on the grate on the floor.

"…Directly beneath us, I would guess." Velvet's voice sounded strange to Leo as she said it. It was emotionless and lacking inflection. Almost as if...

Leo blinked.

And then just like that, the connection was made in his head.

 _So that's why_...

He kept his silence as the rest of the group figured out the way to activate the ladder mechanism and opened the grate.

Leo stood over the pit to hell and stared.

Darkness. Isolation. Solitary confinement.

The deepest, darkest point in the entire prison.

Situated on an island, hundreds of nautical miles from any other civilization.

_This... this was Velvet's..._

CLANG.

The woman leapt first into the pit, forgoing the extended ladder. The rest followed suit into the darkness.

The pit was mind-bogglingly deep. The amount of effort it must've taken to dig it out, even with malakhim, must've been insane. Leo thought the ladder would never stop until finally it did.

He stepped off the ladder onto the claw-marked cold stone floor of the cell.

A therion's cell.

Velvet Crowe's cell.

Leo wanted to retch.

Everywhere he looked he wanted to throw up his innards in utter disgust. To think... think his friend had been living... like this for  _three years_...  _At the hands of her beloved Arthur_.

Velvet's disaffected voice rang out, echoing along the walls. "Welcome to the most secure cell in the entire complex. The darkest hole in Titania." She declared. There was a depressing familiarity in her expression as her gaze leapt between familiar cracks in the walls. "Feel anything, Laphicet?" she asked.

Laphicet nodded, his compass in hand. "Yeah. I think this is the earthpulse point."

 _Of course, it is_. Leo walked slowly around the perimeter of the cell, his boots crackling on the rough, coarse stone. Every inch of the walls and floors had been torn to shreds. Either in battle or out of anger, he didn't know. The very air had a faint but persistent metallic hint. The walls were stained with various different shades of blood. Both human and daemon.

No wonder she had become who she was today.

"If this cell is the earthpulse point," Eleanor asked, her voice echoing throughout the monolithic chamber, "then does that mean it housed a therion?"

"Yeah." Velvet intoned. "And a real hungry one at that."

Leo shook his head. The image just would not leave his thoughts.

That village girl he had known, the one who had loved her family with all her heart; his hunting partner for so long; the one who had wanted nothing more than to see her little Laphi grow up and explore the world... thrown into  _here_.

By her own family. By Artorius.

After he had murdered her brother right before her eyes.

All in the name of  _reason_.

Not looking at the rest of the group, Velvet continued, "Every day, they would toss daemons into its cell. It would devour its fill, and then wipe the blood from its lips."

A monster. She was a monster.

...And the man who had made her the way she was today was a hero.

No. That didn't make any sense.

Where the hell was the reason in that?!

"Never once realizing it was delivering to Innominat the malevolence of hundreds of daemons and prisoners."

Artorius had known. He had planned this. He had calculated every aspect of his atrocity down to the letter.

Velvet was a therion. Therefore, she was to be kept alive in the worst possible condition.

A cell. A  _battery_. A head to feed on malevolence for the greater good.

What a load of bullshit.

"And then one day..." Velvet paused quietly. "...there appeared before it a female malak who shattered the barrier and freed the therion from its cage."

 _Seres_. Leo still remembered her. The one that had been pivotal in warning him about the true nature of the Abbey.

Warnings that turned out to be utterly justified.

"But the therion knew no mercy, and it devoured its liberator."

Just as Artorius said. Seres had offered herself up to Velvet. And Velvet took the blame for that.

Just as she had taken the blame for everything she had done.

She had been broken, completely and utterly by Artorius.

She just didn't care.

"And it was then..." Velvet unleashed her claw and turned to the group. She declared darkly, "It was then that  _I_ obtained the power." The claw clenched tightly, a testament to the raw emotion flowing through her veins. "The power to avenge my brother."

Because why wouldn't she want to do that?

Why not?

Killing Artorius...

It would be doing the world a big favor.

What a hateful man.

"Velvet..." Laphicet murmured in shock. "You're a therion?!"

Rokurou nodded. "So... when Velvet escaped, the malevolence went out of control. Hence the abandoned island."

Magilou affirmed, "Yep. Just like what happened to Haria Village."

Eleanor shook her head in denial. "Lord Artorius would never have done such a thing..." She was trying to convince herself.

Leo simply sat down on one of the jagged outcroppings surrounding the cell in dismay. Dismay that a man could be  _such a bastard_.

"No?! What's so unbelievable?!" Velvet's shrill scream broke the silence. "That he used his wife's brother as a human sacrifice? That he imprisoned his wife's sister?!"

"Because that's what your damned  _holy Shepherd_  did!" She shouted furiously, letting loose all of her emotion at the world for  _daring_ to  _love_ the man who ruined herself and her brother. "All to get his hands on Innominat's power!" She screamed derisively.

Leo watched sadly as Eleanor stammered in denial. "I'm sure he... had a reason for..."

His fists clenched. That fucking word.

"A REASON?!" Velvet screamed as she lunged forward and grabbed Eleanor's clothes and pulled her forward violently. "To spare the world of its pain?! Don't give me that!"

Her eyes trembled in unyielding emotion; fires of a hatred burned so fierce that nothing could ever put it out. "Who will spare my brother's pain?! Who will soothe my brother's despair?!"

She shook Eleanor with rage, as if the motion would help make things right again. "He murdered my little brother Laphi!" Her teeth ground harshly. "And you'll stand there and tell me it was for the 'greater good?!'" She threw Eleanor roughly forward, sending her staggering backwards in shock.

Leo simply shook his head in sorrow. Sorrow that any world, regardless of how many there were out there, could be so cruel.

He stayed in that cell, long after Velvet had calmed down and the group had left.

He tried his best to get even the slightest taste of what his close friend could have possible undergone through the past three years. And then he tried to imagine the hatred he'd feel if such an imprisonment was because of a man whom he had trusted. A man whom had killed his beloved sibling. He tried to imagine how all-consuming the rage would've been.

He couldn't.

His imagination simply wasn't twisted enough to imagine such a thing.

He scoffed, alone in the cell of his friend.

Some things just didn't deserve to be caged, he supposed.

**End of Part 4 - Malevolence.**


	30. C28 - Time to Relax

**Chapter 28 - Time to Relax.**

The claw marks. The red stains. The pungent scent of metallic blood in the air. The constant dripping of water filling the silence. The scratches marring every inch of the cell. The dents in the walls. The metal bars high above. The darkness below.

Leo supposed that if he was some random person from Midgand, he would've immediately classified whoever occupied this cage as a monster. And in some ways, he would've been correct.

But there was oh, so much more to that story.

For if one were to tell the story of the monster that had murdered and eaten its way through the land in a vengeful quest, one would also have to tell of the even more monstrous person whom had caused it.

Artorius. The savior of the people.

The man who was not a man.

But a monster in disguise.

Leo spat in the corner. There was nothing that could redeem the man in his eyes. Nothing.

The clanging of metal broke Leo from his ruminations, the distant clamor of the door to the lowest dungeon being opened echoing deafeningly through the open grate and into the cell below where Leo had been sitting for the past few hours.

"Leo?"

"Down here, Velvet." He called into the darkness.

A few seconds later, a black form leapt down from the opened grate and landed softly in front of the ladder. There, framed in the dim light surrounded by shadows, was the woman the Shepherd had broken.

She strutted over to him. "The rest of the group are all out exploring their new fort like children." She remarked with fond exasperation. She stopped in front of him and glanced around her hauntingly familiar cell with mixed emotions clear on her face. "...What have you been doing here, Leo?" She faced the man sitting at the same spot she'd left him. "You haven't left this cell for hours."

Leo met the woman's gaze. "...Velvet. I've chosen." He said simply.

Velvet blinked.

"I'm going with you." Leo stated firmly.

"...Why?" She asked seriously, her eyes narrowed.

Leo stood up with a grunt, absent-mindedly shaking some feeling into his limbs from lack of movement. He stepped around the cell. "I want to kill Artorius." He stated plainly. "I want to kill the man who would be so evil as to murder his own brother-in-law and to imprison his own sister-in-law whom he loved." He shrugged. "When it comes down to it, I suppose it's quite a simple reason, really."

Silence followed his declaration.

"Are you sure this is what you want?" Velvet whispered quietly, meeting his eyes and searching acutely for any doubt.

Any whatsoever.

Leo held her gaze determinedly. "...Yes." He simply stated.

There was no hesitance in his eyes.

He turned away from her and instead faced the wall with a particularly massive claw mark gouged into the stone. "I don't care what other people think of me. I don't care what the consequences might be. A world where a man like that is a hero and a ruler is a world where I don't want to live. Period."

He faced Velvet determinedly. "I'll help you kill him, Velvet." He stated. "A man like him... who would sacrifice everything he loved for what he believed was right... A man like him is the  _most_ dangerous man a world could possibly have for a leader." He shook his head determinedly. "No matter what the cost. Malevolence, therions, be damned. That man needs to die." He shook his head. "Because the danger of having someone like him in power is worth any cost."

He sighed, all the fight leaving him for the moment. "...And that's... my decision. That's my choice. That's the way I'm going to steer my ship, as Eizen always badgers me to do." He grinned self-depreciatingly. "I'm just going to do what I feel is right. That's all. I'm just going to do what I think gives me the title of the 'good guy.'"

Velvet sighed in resignation at the end of his speech. "...Well." Her mouth formed into a wry smile. "I suppose I did say you were free to do whatever you want. If you want to come along, I can hardly stop you."

Leo smiled in return. "No, you cannot." He agreed.

The two shared a genuine smile. They were companions. They had the same goal. They understood each other thoroughly. And they were friends; they were there for each other.

For now.

Leo's smile faded. "I'll... make sure to do what I can in the time that I have left, at the very least." He muttered.

Silence fell at that statement.

Velvet asked in a soft voice, "And what do you mean by that, Leo?"

He clenched his fists and looked away. "I... I will have to go." He admitted softly. "Eventually. I'll have return home. Forever."

"…I assume that's all the information you're comfortable sharing?" Velvet asked simply.

Leo nodded wordlessly.

Velvet looked on quietly.

Despite it all; despite committing to her cause and to helping her as a friend and to not running away... Leonex Davidson still refused to bridge that ever-present gap between himself and the group.

She sighed in disappointment. "Well, I expected as much." She shook her head. "Come up soon. Hawk and Kamoana are getting on my nerves."

Leo chuckled. "Please. Those two have never gotten off my nerves since the day they met."

Velvet gave the man a soft grin. With that, she left the man to the silence.

Upstairs, the clanging of metal rang once again as the woman left, leaving the man alone once again in the dark.

Separated from everyone else. And not by a gate.

Silence reigned supreme in the cell once more.

* * *

"So..." Leo deadpanned. "You won't drink because you're 19."

Velvet glared back. "Are you suggesting I should drink regardless?" She challenged.

It took Leo a few seconds to comprehend the brilliance of such a steadfast law-abiding. He glanced at a drunk Rokurou. "How many infractions did you say we were in for? A million?" He counted on his fingers, "We're killers, we're deviants, we're going up against the entire world, for one you're not even human anymore, and your life expectancy is hardly looking very good if we're being honest there..."

Velvet blinked. "Well if you want to be blunt..."

She shrugged. "Celica brought me up like that. I was told to never start drinking until I was of age, and that's what I'm going to do."

Leo sighed. "When I was your age, I was drinking almost every other day!" He exclaimed. "Come on, Velvet. Don't be such a  _square_."

The daemon narrowed her eyes. "If you think I, of all people, will succumb to peer pressure, you clearly have not been paying attention these past few months."

Leo sighed. "Alright. Fine. You're a lost cause." He pouted. "Loser."

Kurogane slugged some sake down his head-hole with a shudder. "That's a woman who knows what she wants, alright."

Leo pointed out, "You're leaking by the way."

"I am aware." The armor daemon stated simply.

Rokurou laughed, wobbling slightly under the weight of all his drink. "Say Leo, C-can I-" he hiccupped. "Can I interest you in some? Y-you're over 21, right?"

Leo deadpanned at the man. "I'm 29. Do I  _look_  that young?"

Rokurou drunkenly chuckled. "Maaaaaybe."

"And that's the end of this conversation." Leo noted dryly.

Velvet turned to him. "Have you seen Eleanor by the way?"

Leo shook his head. "I only just got out of the cell. Sorry." He cocked his head. "What do you need Eleanor for?"

"I don't." Velvet waved a dismissive hand. "Kamoana wants to know if she's doing okay."

"Ah." Leo let out sympathetically as the two began to walk away from Rokurou and Kurogane through the main prison chamber. "Children. Can't say no to them sometimes, huh?"

Velvet wryly noted, "Yeah. Just like how you've decided to keep following me."

"I'll have you know that you can go jump off a cliff."

"I already did actually, in my escape from this place."

Leo shook his head in amusement. "Well then. I suppose congratulations are in order?"

Velvet shrugged. "That was hardly the most difficult part of getting off this island. The worst was-"

"Magilou." Leo interrupted. "Right?"

Velvet smirked. "Yeah. Absolutely."

"HEY! I CAN HEAR YOU TWO!" Magilou cried angrily from across the room.

Leo blinked. "Do you hear something?"

Velvet shook her head. "Not at all. I think you're just hallucinating."

"Ah. Make sense." Leo grinned, watching Magilou pout alone in the corner.

He let out a content sigh, looking around him with a smile on his face. All around him there were pirates unloading their stores and reveling in their new hideout. He spotted Griffin and Hawk chasing each other, weaving in and out of the groups of pirates. He saw Prince Percival, Dyle, and Kamoana laughing together. He saw Laphicet and Grim eagerly studying their books, utterly buried in their conversation.

"You know..." Leo intoned softly, "I can't say for sure... but I have the feeling I made the right choice."

Velvet shrugged. "I don't think you did, personally." She smirked. "But you're free to do whatever you want."

"Even if I want to force you to try drinking some alcohol to loosen yourself up a bit?"

"Not unless you want to experience falling off a cliff."

Leo nodded sagely. "Alright. Noted. Next time then."

Velvet sighed in fond exasperation.

* * *

The next morning saw the group back in the main chamber of Titania, discussing their next plan for attack.

"…I have something to say."

Heads turned as Eleanor arrived, announcing herself to everyone. Her fists were curled. It was obvious she had decided on something important.

"There's something I've been hiding... until now." She explained.

Leo blinked. A grin slowly began to form on his face.

Eleanor shook her head and admitted, "I've been acting undercover on a special mission for Lord Artorius."

The group was silent at this declaration.

She pressed on, "I was to watch over the malak Laphicet and bring him to the Abbey headquarters. So vital was the mission... I was to do whatever it took... even kill my fellow exorcists."

She whirled around to the malak in question. "I'm sorry for deceiving you, Laphicet!" She bowed in a display of sincerity. "Originally, I was going to get you to lower your guard, then take you in." She stood firmly. "However, I no longer intend on following the Abbey's orders."

"WHOO!"

Leo suddenly whooped, startling her. "I knew you had it in you, Eleanor!" He grinned, running up to her and giving her a good friendly shake on the shoulder. "I'm so proud of you!"

"Wha-what?! Leo!" She pushed the happy man off in reflex. She gasped in realization. "Y-you mean to say you knew of my mission?!"

Leo grinned shamelessly. "Yep! Absolutely correct!" He put a hand on Velvet's coat and pulled her towards him, much to her displeasure. "Velvet, Eizen, and I were all there that night when Artorius gave you the mission through Melchior's arte."

Eleanor gaped like a fish.

Laphicet giggled. "I think we all knew something was going on, Eleanor." The boy explained as the exorcist turned to him. "Whenever you do something you think is wrong, you get really sweaty and you stammer a lot."

"What?!" Magilou gasped. "She's been a spy this entire time?!" She paused. "...was that convincing enough for ya?" She grinned deviously.

Rokurou laughed. "You're not really cut for this whole spy thing, are ya?"

Eleanor, blushing madly at the realization that  _everyone_ had known something was up, stammered, "E-evidently not!" She let out a sigh of dismay. "To think I failed so badly as my role as a spy!"

Laphicet piped up supportively, "It's alright Eleanor. Actually, I think it's a good thing you have a hard time lying. It's a lot better than having an easy time."

Eizen chuckled. "The kid knows what he's talking about. Treasure your traits, Eleanor."

Velvet cocked her head curiously. "Does this mean you're turning your back on Artorius?"

Eleanor gathered herself and shook her head firmly. "No. Not entirely."

She struggled for words. "I... still believe in his sincerity. That he truly seeks a world that will benefit all mankind. My time as his student has taught me that." Her eyes were drawn to Kamoana watching the scene curiously. "...However, I simply cannot bring myself to condone the methods he has chosen to achieve that vision. So..." She met Velvet's eyes.

"I will help you protect the therions." She declared. "Until I discover the answer I seek." She shook her head. "I want to live a life that I don't have to be ashamed of. To do that... I simply have to learn the truth for myself."

"So!" Rokurou grinned. "Turns out you live by your emotions after all!"

Eizen splayed his hands. "Perhaps you've found your own creed."

"Welcome to our wonderful world of wickedness!" Magilou sang as she spun around gracefully.

"D-Don't equate us!" Eleanor sputtered hotly in the face of their approval. "To act in opposition of one's feelings is to act opposed to reason!"

Velvet muttered fondly, "You never make things simple, do you."

"You should be glad I don't!"

Leo couldn't stop grinning. "Well! That puts us all in the same side."

Eleanor blinked. "You mean to say..." She pointed wordlessly at the man.

Magilou let out a laugh of delight. "Oho! You've finally decided what to do, is that right? Finally!" She grinned toothily. "I was getting worried you'd be an indecisive boob for the rest of your life at the rate you were going at."

"Not anymore." Leo stated firmly and met Velvet's eyes. "I'm done with all this nonsense. I've decided that Artorius can go to hell for what he's done. I'll help you guys see this through to the end."

"Leo..." Eleanor muttered. "...you want to kill Lord Artorius too?"

The man met her incredulous gaze seriously. "Eleanor," He began, "I know you're finding your answer. I accept that. I've found mine."

He glanced around the prison. Proof of the man's sins.

"The things the man does for his ideal world... it makes him a danger to the world, whether they realize it or not. It's what I think is right. The things he's done for the sake of the ideal world... The things he could possibly DO... He deserves to die for his sins, and his potential for further sin." He shrugged. "That's it."

Eizen nodded. "Well said." He noted appreciatively.

Velvet shrugged. "Well, don't say I didn't warn you when you end up dying."

Leo waved her off inconsequentially. "Yeah, yeah, nag some more would ya?"

At the daemon's glare he yelped, "Kidding! Kidding!"

Eleanor stood there contemplating his words silently before finally nodding in recognition of his position. "...Alright then. For now, it would seem that our interest align in that we'll be saving the therions for now." She shrugged. "I suppose we're still going to be travelling together."

"Oh no." Leo remarked dryly. "And here I thought I'd be done with your ugly face."

Eleanor huffed. "The same could be said here."

The former mentor and pupil exchanged a smile.

Rokurou grinned. "Glad to have you with us, Leo. For good, this time."

Eizen nodded. "Aye. I look forward to travelling with you some more. Both you and Eleanor."

Laphicet nodded happily. "Same here!" He grinned. "And Hawk as well!" He laughed while ruffling the wolf's fur.

Leo rolled his eyes. "Of course, it's the dog that he cares about most."

"Naturally." Velvet noted dryly. "Who the hell would want you along?"

"I don't know," Leo muttered vengefully, "my fantastic jokes, my indispensable utility in combat, and my fantastic moral compass?"

"I… don't think any of those apply to you Leo..." Laphicet pointed out uncertainly.

"Ow." Leo winced. "That hurt."

Velvet shrugged. "He might not have any of those things, but..." she sighed and admitted reluctantly, "...I suppose it would be nice to have you around, Leo. Thank you." She gave the man a smile.

Leo gaped at her.

Everyone else gaped at her.

Rokurou muttered, "Did she just..."

Magilou breathed in wonder, "I think she did."

Eleanor shook her head in wonder. "That's amazing..."

Eizen nodded sagely. "That's something you don't see every day."

Laphicet grinned wildly. "Velvet!" He cried happily.

Velvet was clearly taken aback by everyone's overreactions. "Wh-what?!" She stammered, the blood rushing to her face. Her head swiveled, watching as every person in the group stared at her as if she'd sprouted a second daemon arm.

Leo gaped. "Velvet. ...Are you feeling alright?" he waved his hand over the therion's forehead anxiously. "You don't have a fever, do you? I don't even know if you therions can get sick but... this sure seems like you can..." He anxiously felt Velvet's forehead for her temperature.

Growling, the woman slapped away his hands irritably. "Alright, fine. I won't say thank you then." She stormed off heatedly.

Leo exchanged incredulous looks with everyone else.

"VELVET!" He yelled anxiously. "Hold still! There must be something SERIOUSLY wrong with you!" He called as he charged after the woman.

"BUZZ OFF!"

The rest of the group took a second to comprehend what had just occurred and burst into grins.

"Well whaddya know..." Magilou observed lightly. "The man does have an effect on her. I knew having him around would make things more interesting."

Laphicet smiled warmly. "Velvet looked so different when she smiled..." He closed his eyes, trying to engrain the image in his head. " It was really nice seeing that."

Rokurou elbowed the boy playfully. "Ohoh? So that's what you like?"

"AH!" Laphicet exclaimed. "N-no! It's nothing like that!"

"Your face is all red, kiddo." Magilou pointed out slyly.

Eleanor laughed. "Laphicet! Do you have a crush on Velvet?" She cooed.

Eizen grinned. "Ah, it was bound to happen to him with someone. Might as well be Velvet."

Laphicet shook his head, his face burning red, mute with embarrassment. "I'm NOT! I swear!"

Hawk whined and nudged the kid playfully.

"Not you too Hawk!" Laphicet whined in mortification.

Eleanor laughed as the rest of the group continued to tease the poor malak incessantly about his alleged crush for Velvet. She watched through the open doors of the chamber as Velvet wrestled Leo into a chokehold and threw him into the ocean next to the Van Eltia for insisting she had a fever.

She grinned, genuinely happy.

These people... she'd find her answer with them. Just like Leo had. And then... she'd find her life that she wanted. A life that she wouldn't be ashamed of living.

So said reason.


	31. C29 - Pot

**Chapter 29 - Pot.**

"...I'm bored."

Hawk didn't bother gracing that complaint with a response.

"Come on, Hawk. Talk to me. I'm dying of boredom here."

Hawk gave his master a deadpan. His stare clearly read, "I can't speak. Dipshit."

Leo sighed, wiping his forehead of sweat and glaring heatedly at the utterly motionless fishing rod sitting happily against the railing of the Van Eltia. "Maybe it's just like cooking for me. Maybe I'm just not destined for the realm of fishing." He muttered. He stared at the rod,  _daring_ it to move.

The flapping of the rolled-up canvas above and the occasional sedate movement of a person on the deck was all that could be heard. With the sails stowed and the anchor thrown, there wasn't much to do here except to wait.

The sun beat incessantly onto the poor souls on the deck. All waiting in silence.

Leo's eye twitched.

"I give up!" He cried, throwing up his hands. "Hawk, watch my rod for me, since you don't seem to be very busy. I need a breather."

His wolf simply tossed his tail in acknowledgement, lazing happily on the hot railing.

"Lazy mutt..." Leo grumbled as he took a look around at the other participants in the "Therion Hunt."

Because apparently, the plan was to try to see if there were any therions at an underwater earthpulse point by fishing. Leo grumbled sourly, throwing his rod a dirty look over his shoulder. He gave it the finger and walked off.

"Haha! Old man Teddy sounds like a real goofball!"

His eyes were drawn instead to Laphicet and Eleanor clearly having a good time. Both their lines were set next to one another, their strings dangling peacefully over the railing.

Eleanor smiled nostalgically. "He was. One time, he told me of the time he almost caught a shark on accident when he was out fishing for bass on the ocean."

Laphicet's eyes were wide. "A shark?!"

Eleanor nodded, laughing at the memory. "Half the village had to help haul his boat back after the shark had pulled the man clean out of it." She laughed. "He didn't go fishing for another month after that."

"Was he alright?!" Laphicet asked in worry. "He fell into the water with the shark, right?!"

Eleanor shook her head. "The thing is, in the end, it turned out there wasn't a shark at all. Old man Tenny just  _told_ everyone that to save himself the embarrassment."

Laphicet blinked. "Did he fall off his ship on accident or something?"

The praetor giggled. "A villager who was on the beach at the time saw the whole thing happen. Apparently, Old man Tenny was..." She searched for a manner to put it delicately. "...Answering the call of nature when he tripped on his own pants and fell butt-naked into the water."

"What?! No way! That's ridiculous!" He gaped in disbelief.

Eleanor laughed alongside him. She admitted, "Despite that though, Old man Tenny was genuinely the best fisherman in the village, hands down. He taught me everything I know." She grinned. "And now that knowledge has been passed down to you, Laphicet."

Laphicet nodded. "Thank you for teaching me Eleanor!"

Leo gave a grin as he watched malak and vessel get along swimmingly, leaning on the railing nearby.

His grin faded as he noticed Velvet watching with clear envy in her expression, standing alone on the other side of the deck as Benwick did the knot on her fishing rod for her. Laphicet noticed her too. And, to Leo's surprise, he ignored hers.

_Ah. So that's what it is._

It seemed like the kid was finally getting rebellious.

Making up his mind, Leo trotted up to the exorcist and malak as their conversation faded, leaving them leaning against the railing and watching the clear waters below.

"Hey Laphicet." He gestured over to himself. "Mind if I had a word?"

Laphicet looked at Eleanor. She nodded. "I'll keep an eye on your rod for you. Don't worry. Fishing is a waiting game, after all. I'll call if anything bites."

Laphicet nodded. "Alright. Thanks Eleanor."

Leo beckoned Laphicet over to his own rod which was sitting petulantly despite being rudely abandoned by its owner. Hawk stirred from his lazing and yipped a greeting to Laphicet, who gave him a scruff on the head in return.

Leo got right to the point. "You're ignoring Velvet."

Laphicet seemed to have expected such a topic. He shook his head. "I'm not ignoring her, I just..." he struggled for words. "I... hate the way she looks at me sometimes." He muttered in frustration under his breath. "…Calling me Laphi."

Leo nodded soberly. "I... figured this topic might come up." He admitted. "So, you suspect she's not seeing you for who you really are." He kneeled down conspiratorially next to him.

"Whaddya gonna do about it?" He asked slyly.

Laphicet blinked. "You're not going to tell Velvet?" He asked.

The man shook his head. "No, bud. I'm not." He affirmed, his eyes distant. "…I was once in a situation like yours, believe it or not." He stood up and leaned on the railing, scratching Hawk absent-mindedly as he always did. "…I know from experience that confrontation's the only way to solve this."

His eyes saw a different place and time, his memories once again coming back to haunt him.

"My dad and I were really close, at one point in our lives."

He smiled fondly. "My best childhood memories of him were of him and I working together." He sighed. "But then came a time when he just simply wasn't seeing me for who I was anymore. All I was to him was a tool. Something convenient to try to use to his own ends."

Laphicet's whole body was rigid. Leo sharing information was not a thing to be taken lightly.

The boy asked tentatively, "So… what happened? Between you and your father?"

Leo shook his head quickly. "That's not the point." He quickly shut down the topic, closing up once again as was normal.

"The point is," he turned away from the horizon and met Laphicet's gaze, "I know how you feel, Laphicet. The only advice I can offer you is this;" He sighed. "...Let her know how you feel, that's all. Talk." He looked away again. "It doesn't have to be now, it doesn't have to be tomorrow, but one day, just make sure you get around to doing it."

"…I never did." He muttered under his breath.

"...Okay." Laphicet nodded firmly. "I'll do that. Thanks Leo."

Leo grinned. "You want to show her you're unique, right?" He gave the kid a pat. "Don't worry. You are. Take that from someone who knew Laphi." He shrugged. "All that's left is to make her see that as well."

Laphicet's eyes grew firm with determination. "Alright." He pumped his fist. "I'll do it! I'll show her that I'm my own person!"

Leo nodded fondly. "Go get her." He encouraged. "Show her who you really are."

As the kid walked back over to Eleanor with a newfound drive, Leo's mind drew back to the memories he'd talked of. His lip upturned into a frown.

How he wished he had such advice back then.

* * *

"Leo! My boy!" The familiar gruff voice greeted Leo as he stepped into his father's lab. "Just in time!"

He found the older man hunched over his laptop, his eyes never leaving his calculations as he spoke to his son. The older Davidson waved distractedly at the white boards arrayed on the wall. "Give me some input on that new model, would you? I think I've implemented your suggestions from last time as best as I could. I just feel that the coordinates for each universe aren't considering all the factors." He admitted, flipping the page on his notebook.

Wordlessly, Leo did as was told, walking over to the massive array of whiteboards layered with colors upon colors of closely interconnected jargon detailing the very nature of the world.

Or rather, worlds.

Leo's father continued heedlessly over there in the opposite corner of the lab, scribbling furiously on sticky-noted notebook pages and blinking rapidly between the notebook and his laptop. "In theory," the man explained absently, "most of the other aspects of The Device should execute flawlessly. For one, the actual utilization of the Davidson Phenomenon in order to transport a person from one world to another is founded on sound logic."

He swiped something on his laptop. "Furthermore, the initial scans that ensure said world contains all the necessary elements for a human to stay alive are also sound." He scoffed. "I think those are pretty important if I'm going to be hopping worlds anytime soon."

Leo pulled out a hot red dry erase marker, the only color that hadn't been used in the visible spectrum on the white board, and began to make corrections. That was his job, of course.

His father continued, "The jump should theoretically be perfect. But of course, I'm sure you'll find plenty of holes in my current model, as usual." He chuffed. "Always the creative one, my boy." His eyes glinted in pride.

And then he blinked and then he readjusted his glasses to better see the calculations he was testing at the moment and went back to his work.

"At the rate things are going, maybe I should just snuff the whole world-address thing." He shook his head. "Travelling to different worlds sounds fun enough. I suppose there isn't much point in going back to old worlds when there's so many possible things to see!" His eyes glinted fervently. "Think about it, my boy! Think of all the possibilities! The things I could see! The people I could meet!"

CLACK!

A red marker suddenly smashed angrily across the lab, having been thrown by Leo in anger.

 _"...Isn't... much point_?!" Leo snarled viciously, shaking with fury. "What about coming  _home_  to Earth _?_ What about your company? Your wife? Your son?  _Me_? Do we really mean so little to you?!"

The lab was silent after Leo's outburst, broken only by the constant whirl of fans of the active servers in the corner.

His father sighed, not even looking up from his work to meet his son's eyes. "Son... I told you." He sighed. "This... Device."

Leo's fists curled at that hateful word.

"I told you," his father continued patiently as if explaining to a child, "this Device is my life's work. It's all I have left." He scribbled on his notebook, shaking his head absently. "I don't... want to leave this world and not have another destination in mind. That's all."

Leo fumed furiously in the spot.

"But... what about mom? What about  _me_? Do you not...?" He muttered quietly.

"Have you completed looking over my model, son?" His father asked absent-mindedly, ignorant of his son's anguish.

Leo glanced at the model he had barely even begun to correct.

He curled his fists.

"...Yeah." He muttered sourly. "...Later, Dad."

"Goodnight, Leo."

His father didn't look up when his son left.

* * *

"Catch anything?"

The man was startled out of his thoughts as Velvet Crowe walked up to him, evidently trying to occupy herself while Benwick fiddled with her rod.

Leo shook his head, trying to dispel the disgusting memories from his head. "I haven't caught jack. I don't think anyone else's having much luck, either."

Hawk whined at the newcomer. Velvet smirked and gave the spoiled pup a perfunctory rub. "Well, I can't say I expected too much. Everyone else does seem to be enjoying themselves though." Her eyes gravitated inevitably towards Eleanor and Laphicet chatting animatedly. Her eyes narrowed imperceptibly.

Leo gave the woman a knowing pat on the shoulder to her displeasure. "Velvet." He drawled. "You're part of everyone too. Shouldn't you be enjoying yourself?" He shrugged. "After all, fishing is a waiting game. What's the point of playing it if you don't have fun?"

Velvet shrugged his hand off. "I'd enjoy it more once Benwick gets his paws off my rod."

Leo shrugged. "Here. Take mine. I'm not using it."

Velvet eyed the neglected rod sitting pretty next to Hawk. "Clearly. You've done it all wrong, by the way."

Leo blinked. Hawk gave him a deadpan stare.

Velvet walked up to his rod. "You've put the string through all the wrong holes. They're all messed up, you see? If a fish did grab onto your bait, the string would come clean off the road." She shook your head in dismay. "This is actually  _impressive_ just how screwed up you managed to make it. Leo, I think you might be better at cooking than you are fishing." She stared at the rod in obvious consternation.

"Oh, come on!" Leo whined. "You know, when I told you to enjoy yourself, I didn't mean picking on me, you know!"

Velvet smirked as she knelt down in front of the rod and set to work restringing it. Leo himself turned and gazed out at the ocean absently as she worked, this time without the uncomfortable memories plaguing him.

As the two stood there in companionable silence, they became aware of a decidedly uncompanionable racket going on across the deck.

"Eizen, maybe you should take it easy and just give up now. Fishing is a sport  _made_ for the swordsman." Rokurou goaded, flinging his rod overboard with a violent cut that only a master swordsman could manage.

His opponent scoffed in response, twirling his precious Fujibayashi's Rod in his hands before swinging it over as well. "Watch and learn, my unlearned companion." He grinned in superiority.

"Hah! No thanks. I was always taught against learning under clueless masters." Rokurou grinned snidely.

"Who are you calling clueless?!" Eizen grunted, sending the man a death glare worthy of the reaper.

Leo chuckled nervously as the two glared at each other heatedly. "I uh... get the feeling there's a storm brewing."

Velvet sighed, waving a hand. "Might as well let it tide over." She turned back to her work.

Silence fell once again. Leo glanced over at the woman working laboriously to restring his fishing rod. He then glanced behind him to where Laphicet and Eleanor were chatting away, both of them seemingly happy as can be. He grinned sadly and said nothing, leaving the silence unbroken. His eyes settled instead on the distant horizon.

His thoughts started to ebb once more into the past, to a time when he himself felt as if he wasn't being seen for who he really was.

* * *

"Leo?"

The man blinked.

He smiled sheepishly, eyes refocusing on the woman in front of him. "Sorry, Martha." He scratched the back of his head. "I lost you for a bit. What were you saying?"

The woman sitting across the table from him with cascading blonde hair, warm blue eyes, and a hint of a smile playing on her lips sighed in mock exasperation. "Leo. Honestly." She smiled, laying a hand on top of his on the table. "You've been spacing out so much recently. Is your dad still giving you grief with that project of his?"

Leo nodded morosely, the smile fading from his face. "I'm afraid so." He didn't elaborate.

Martha's face fell sympathetically. She gave him a firm squeeze on the hand. "You can talk to me about it, you know Leo." She smiled warmly. "I know, I know it's a family secret," she acquiesced immediately, "but even still." She held his eyes firmly. "If it's bothering you, you can tell me. I hope you know that."

Leo's face split widely in a grateful smile. "...Thanks, Martha. That's really good to know, especially the way he is these days..." He shook his head and squeezed back. "I love you." He intoned softly.

Martha grinned. "I love you too, honey." She moved Leo's hand slightly to the side.

Their eyes were drawn to the gem sitting on her ring finger. Its shine was bright in the candlelight.

Leo sighed at the sight. "I still wish you would've let me spend more on the ring." He muttered.

Martha rolled her eyes playfully. "I'm glad I caught you before you proposed. That giant gem you were planning on buying would've set you back a fortune."

Leo raised an eyebrow. "You know the point of these things is to prove that your love is worth more to me than any fortune, right?"

The woman grinned. "I know. But, remember," she fiddled with Leo's hand on the table, "since you're Mr. Son-of-a-billionaire..." she gestured meaningfully around them at the high-class restaurant they were in. "I wanted to show that  _your_ love is worth more to me than any fortune." She smiled gently. "So, you can go suck it, Mr. Davidson."

Leo laughed. He laughed like he never did alongside his father anymore.

Calming down, the man smiled gently back at his wife-to-be. "...I love you, Martha. Did I forget to mention that?"

Martha's eyes glinted with humor. "I think you did. Try not to forget at the wedding, though."

Leo grinned. "I'll try. No promises though. You know how forgetful I am."

Martha rolled her eyes.

The man's grin faded as his phone abruptly buzzed with a phone call. His entire body seemed to freeze, the joy instantly disappearing from his expression. The ringing continued.

"You going to answer that?" Martha asked curiously.

Leo grit his teeth curtly.

"...No." He answered.

He promptly pulled out his phone and silenced it.

He tried his best to maintain a smile. "Now. For the wedding." He said casually, slipping his phone back into the darkness of his pocket. "I hope you don't mind me splurging just a  _little_ on the cake..."

Martha looked on sadly.

She shook her head slightly before answering. "Leonex Davidson, I have told you before and I will tell you again. I will  _not_ have you spending so much...!"

The conversation continued from there.

The night would be long and the outlook bright. It would be a happy discussion about a beautiful wedding and a bright future.

A conversation that did not include Leo's father.

* * *

"You look ridiculous. Take that off."

"Stop it! What do you know about me, anyway?!"

Leo's gaze was abruptly drawn to the middle of the deck of the Van Eltia where the rest of the group had gathered. It would seem that Laphicet had had enough. He watched as a shocked Velvet grasped vainly for words as Laphicet angrily expressed his frustration.

"All you know is  _your_  'Laphi!'" He cried. "You don't see me at all!"

Silence.

Despite the tension in the air, Leo found himself smiling sadly at his place outside of the group.

The kid had the guts he never had.

He blinked at a tugging sound. "Hey! Velvet! You've got a bite!" He yelled, startling everyone and drawing attention to Velvet's jerking rod.

Velvet seemed to stare like a deer caught in headlights for a second before snapping out of it. "Oh!" She ran over to her rod and pulled. There was unexpected resistance.

"It's a big one!" Eizen commented. There rest of the group watched in suspense as Velvet, never one to give up without a fight, growled and tugged harder.

"Come on, Velvet!" Leo encouraged. "I'm hungry!"

Rokurou grinned. "So am I! Make us proud, Velvet."

"Give it everything you've got!" Magilou cheered happily.

Velvet gritted out through clenched teeth, "I know... what I'm..." She heaved the rod with tremendous effort. " _DOING!_ "

SPLASH.

CLANG.

Everyone blinked as of all things, a giant  _pot_ landed on the deck of the Van Eltia with a hollow thud.

Leo sighed. "...A pot. A damned pot." He groaned alongside his stomach. "I don't suppose it's edible, is it?"

Eleanor shook her head in disappointment. "I don't think even Velvet could eat this one."

Velvet herself heaved in exertion, catching her breath. "But... what the hell is a pot doing all the way out here?"

Leo glanced over at the rest of the things the group had caught lying bunched together up on the deck. The pile of waterlogged accessories looked even more ridiculous juxtaposed to the giant pot. "On that note, what the hell is any of this stuff doing all the way out here?" He muttered.

Magilou slumped forward. "Reaper's curse indeed. We'll starve before we catch any fish." She languished. "We're finished."

Eleanor gave her a look. "We're only a few hours out from Titania and it's not like we don't have other food on board."

The witch pouted. "But my Koi! My Sockeyed Salmon!"

"I don't even think you can catch any of those out here."

Leo trotted up to Laphicet and gave him a meaningful pat. He gave him a quiet grin, congratulating the malak for his success in confronting Velvet. In return, Laphicet nodded back determinedly.

"Uh... Does anyone feel that?" Rokurou muttered.

Velvet glanced around in confusion as the ship began to tremble. Her eyes zeroed in on the pot. The pot that was shaking.

Eizen seemed ignorant of everything around him as he kneeled down in awe next to the pot they'd fished up. "Magnificent! To think I'd get to see one with my own eyes!" His eyes shined with mania.

Leo stammered, "Uh, er, Eizen?" Leo stammered. "You might wanna-"

Eizen stood and cut him off. "Listen and behold! This is none other than a water jug made by the potter Grune during King Claudin's reign."

Laphicet spoke up with worry evident in his voice, "Eizen?" He glanced fearfully at the shaking pot.

"It was a legendary once-in-a-millennium masterpiece. Lost in the Second Warring States Period two hundred years ago."

Eleanor blinked. "E-Eizen, the pot; it's-"

"Assertive yet not ostentatious, the piece draws you in with its stately curves and the subtle shimmer of its colors, which belie a hidden savagery." He grinned and looked over his shoulder at the group. "The lost glazing technique of the Oresoren is so vibrant, it looks like it could start moving at any moment!"

"IT  _IS_ MOVING!" Everyone cried.

"Huh?!" Like a spell was broken, Eizen suddenly snapped out of his mania and recognized the shuddering pot emitting malevolence inches away from him.

Velvet cried, "Get back here!" She pulled out her sword.

Eizen panickily sprinted away from the pot as the rumbling of the pot increased exponentially before suddenly stopping.

Leo blinked.

FWOOM!

And then, standing before them on the deck of the Van Eltia, was a  _giant fucking pot daemon_  with two giant pincer claws and two stubby legs, glaring hatefully at its captors.

"COME ON!" Leo moaned angrily as he reached behind his back. "I just wanted to have some  _fish_!" He yelled as he clicked the safety off on his rifle.

Magilou grinned, preparing artes to protect the ship. "On the bright side, it looks like Velvet  _can_ eat this one after all."

"Don't you dare, Velvet!" Eizen yelled angrily while charging forward.

Velvet threw him a look. "It's a  _pot_. I'm not eating it." She followed hot on his heels to clash with the daemon.

Leo grunted. "Are you saying you don't  _pot_ -take?"

Magilou chortled as she finished her arte. "Let's not  _pot-_ tend otherwise."

Eleanor groaned while hefting her spear and charging by the two. "Must you?!" She yelled.

Leo grinned while raising his rifle. "Eizen, Velvet!" He barked. "Crossfire left! Twice!"

"Got it!" "Do it!"

CRACK!

CRACK!

Two regular rounds pinged harmlessly off the armor of the pot to ricochet high in the sky, dangerously close to the furled-up sails and rigging.

Eizen threw a brief glare at Leo. "Don't you dare break my ship!" He snarled.

Leo stuck out a tongue. "Be glad those weren't explosive rounds!" He shot back.

Laphicet called out in warning, "Guys, watch out!"

Velvet, Eleanor, Rokurou, and Eizen all swore and dove out of the way as the pot's pincers spun around like rotors with lethal velocity.

Rokurou cursed. "We can't get near that thing!"

Magilou huffed. "Watch and learn!" She threw her arms out.

SPLASH!

A ton of mana-water crashed down onto the daemon, flowing out in all directions off the deck underneath the railings.

Up on deck, Benwick moaned, "Come on! That'll take years to wash out!" He called out angrily. The group ignored him.

Eleanor squinted through the dissipating water. "I don't think that even did anything."

Eizen cursed. "Don't break it! It's a celebrated masterpiece!"

Leo threw him a glare. "Do you want your ship to be the next long-lost sunken treasure when that daemon destroys it?!" He ejected all the bullets in the magazine tube and pushed a special-looking round into his rifle. "I'm going to try something. I'll need the daemon to be over by the side of the ship. Now!" He called out, cocking his rifle.

Velvet nodded. "On it!" With a blast of wind, the therion charged the daemon.

"Be careful of the pincers!" Laphicet yelled in warning.

Heeding the malak's warning, Velvet leapt inhumanly high over a sweeping pincer and twisted her body in a fierce kick that knocked the pot off-balance. Landing quickly with a follow-up, her claw leapt out of her left arm and she pushed it forward towards the daemon.

"Carve them up!" She declared. "Hell's Claw!"

BANG!

With a massive detonation of fire mana, the pot-daemon was catapulted to the side by Velvet's arte, landing in a crumpled heap in front of the railing. Leo wasted no time and fired.

CRACK-CAK!

With a warped report, the rifle round fired from Leo's rifle at the typical velocity. The difference was in the tip of the bullet, which was tipped with ultra-hard, extremely rugged material alongside perforations that allowed for additional stability in flight, which resulted in the altered sound. The piercing round flew right on course and struck the daemon in center mass right as it was getting up.

It went straight through.

With a loud crack the bullet, still intact, dug itself into the railing behind the pot daemon, having gone clean through. The critically wounded daemon slumped helplessly to the deck and exploded in a burst of malevolence, returning to an innocent-looking pot.

Everyone stared at the pot on guard for a few seconds longer before letting out a collective sigh.

Benwick moaned from his spectator's position up top, "Did that bullet go straight into the railing?!" He slapped a hand on his forehead to the displeasure of the slyphjays nesting in his hair. "Do you know how hard that's going to be to dig out?!" He cried.

Leo gave the man standing above him an innocent shrug, ejecting the spent shell. "I think that went pretty well, considering it was the preliminary field test of a penetrator round using brightsteel."

"That's it!" Benwick threw up his hands. " No more fishing for today." He declared firmly. He winced as he took in the mess of water and heavy tread marks of the pot daemon on his precious deck. He groaned, "I thought fishing was supposed to be relaxing!" With that, he headed below deck, looking to rustle up some crewmembers to help clean the mess the group had made.

Meanwhile, Velvet trotted up to the pot guardedly. "...Looks like it's finally decided to behave itself." She muttered, eyeing it distrustfully.

Eizen hurriedly ran up to the pot, instantly forgetting the danger it had posed not just a moment ago and began to lovingly caress it in search of any wear and tear Leo's bullet might've caused.

Eleanor shook her head in exasperation. "Well, it would seem that there aren't any therions around here."

Leo glared sourly at the pot. "Yep." He muttered. "And no fish either." He hung his head as his stomach growled angrily once more at being denied.

Laphicet sighed dejectedly. "My power didn't end up helping us out at all... I just led everyone to the middle of nowhere..."

"Yep." Velvet agreed carelessly.

Laphicet simply seemed to sink lower into himself.

"...But I know you're not the type to give up after a little setback." Her lips curved upwards gently. "Isn't that right, Phi?"

Laphicet looked up in surprise, eyes wide.

Leo's smile couldn't be wider. He settled himself by the front of the ship next to his fishing rod (that still hadn't caught jack) and watched the show as Velvet and 'Phi' made up. He and Hawk exchanged a smirk.

"...You're you. You're Phi." Velvet's voice was soft and tender; the closest she'd ever been to sounding like she used to back in Aball.

"Velvet..." Laphicet muttered softly.

As the two made up, Leo's gaze drifted away towards the distant horizon, where the brilliant gold sunset was shining bright.

His lips curved upwards as his mind was drawn to the happier times.

* * *

"Dad! Dad!"

The distant ring of a child's voice warned the man long before he charged into the lab with a notebook in hand, sweating and puffing.

The man abandoned the work he was currently banging his head against and turned his full attention to his son. "What is it, Leo?" He asked curiously. "Please tell me you've beaten your dumb father at this nonsense." He threw a disdainful glare behind him at the computer sitting innocently on the desk.

Leo practically leaped into the seat next to his father, breathing hard. "D-Dad," he gasped. "I, I had a thought." He sucked in a breath.

His dad patted him roughly on the back. "Take a deep breath, son, or that thought might end up being one of the last thoughts you have." He grinned amicably. "Let's not have you die before we solve this phenomenon, huh?"

Leo nodded and caught his breath. Once that had laboriously been achieved, he bobbed excitedly up and down on the lab stool and flipped his notebook to the last written page. He pointed to the top of the pencil-scratched page. "Look! So, here's what we know so far, right?" The words tumbled out of his mouth like a waterfall. "We know that the phenomenon occurs  _everywhere_  in the universe, with the  _exact_ same strength and signature, no matter how many decimal places of accuracy we use."

His father nodded impatiently, waving dismissively at his son. "Yes, yes. You'd think I'd know this after all this time."

Leo shook his head and continued relentlessly. "And we also know that this phenomenon can't interact with anything. For all intents and purposes, it does absolutely nothing. It's just...  _there_."

His father glanced over his shoulder sourly. "And I had such high hopes for this being a way to end the world's power problems." He looked back at his kid. "Yeah. We know that, and we don't know anything else. What've you got for me, bud?"

Leo nodded. He took a deep breath. "It might sound weird but..." He shook his head determinedly. "I think the reason that the Davidson Radiation is so consistent and is so intangible..." He sighed, suddenly keenly aware of his father's piercing glare.

"...Is because it's not from this world." He let out in a quiet voice.

His father stilled.

The lab was utterly silent.

Leo waited in suspense.

"...You're a genius." His father stated plainly.

Leo's face split into the widest smile it could manage.

HIs father stood up abruptly.

"You're a FUCKING GENIUS!" The man whooped, running towards the other end of the lab towards the server terminals.

"You know mom would flip if she heard you swearing around me dad." Leo reminded wryly.

His father couldn't stop moving, going from terminal to terminal and setting up new models. "Think about it, Leo! Our family might've just stumbled upon the key to the nature of our very  _universe_!  _Think about it_!" He yelled, sweat running down his face as he hustled to another terminal. "How in the world did you come up with that, you creative little bugger?!"

Leo stood up as well grinning. "I read about the multi-verse theory online. I just found it really interesting and then one day it just popped into my head. What if the phenomenon was proof of such a thing? It would make sense, right?!"

His father shook his head in amusement. "It makes a hell of a lot more than just sense, Leo. It just feels inherently  _right_  to me." He let out a breath as he began scribbling some notes down and taping it to servers. "This damn phenomenon has been such a pain in the neck for so long but now..." He laughed happily. "…Now I feel like I can actually do my father proud."

Leo jogged over to him and gave him a hug. "You've already done grandpa proud, dad." He grinned. "Look at all the experiments you've already made over the past few years."

His father scoffed. "Paltry in comparison to  _your_ contribution just now." He suddenly remembered something and stopped working, instead putting two hands on his son's shoulders. "Leo."

He knelt down to his son's level and gave a genuine smile. "You have no idea how proud I am of you right now. You're smarter than I ever could've been. If your grandpa was here today... he'd be just as proud as I am." He gave his son a firm squeeze on the shoulders. "...I'm proud to be your father."

And in that moment, Leo felt whole.

He replied softly, "...Thanks, dad."

Neither of them left the lab for the next three days, instead working together non-stop on the nature of the universe. Together, they made leaps and bounds of logic using Leo's inherent intuition; finally, some progress after having been stuck for years on end. They would eventually uncover the secrets of the universes. Together, father and son.

Just the two of them, against the worlds.

* * *

CREAK.

Leo blinked.

He swore.

"I've got a bite!" He cried, lunging for his fishing pole that was tumbling off the railing. He managed to snatch it just before it nearly fell off and pulled it back with effort.

Everyone ran over to him.

Eleanor noted, "I'd almost forgotten you were fishing with us."

Velvet observed dryly, "Maybe that's because this entire time he'd left the fishing up to Hawk."

Hawk flicked his tail lazily.

Eizen was giddy with anticipation. "What could it be?! Could it perhaps be another masterpiece like the pot?!"

Rokurou grinned happily. "I hope it's another daemon too! Or at least some more orichalcum."

On the other side of the deck, Benwick twitched.

Magilou sang, "Never mind that, looks like it might actually be a fish!" She pointed at the wriggling line that was giving Leo grief. "Go Leo! Get us some fresh fish!"

Phi encouraged, "Come on, Leo! You can do it!"

"ARGH! I'm not so sure I... CAN!" Leo groaned as his very soul felt like he was being tugged out of his body by the string.

"AHHHHH!" He screamed as the string gave a massive tug and pulled him clean off his feet over the railing and towards the water below.

"Leo!?" Laphicet cried in alarm.

"Grab him!" Eizen shouted urgently.

Leo's fall overboard was suddenly stopped by a hand grabbing his free hand, the other still holding onto the creaking fishing rod. He glanced up and found Velvet with her daemon arm extended and gouged into the side of the ship to keep them in place. Up above them, Benwick could be heard crying out in dismay about hull damage.

Leo glanced up wryly at his savior. "I think," he called out over the wind, "you strung my rod a little  _too_ well!"

Velvet rolled her eyes and turned her gaze upwards towards the railing where the others were watching anxiously. "Someone throw us a rope!"

"And do it quick!" Leo added. "This damn fish is going to tug us both off at this rate!"

A rope was thrown overboard. Velvet nodded to Leo and let go of the ship, instead leaping towards the rope and grabbing onto it, the man swung underneath her like a pendulum to his dismay as she did so.

"We're on! Pull!" They cried together.

Together, the crew of the Van Eltia pulled the two back onto the deck, the catch still struggling firmly on the other end of the string.

Leo didn't have time to breathe, still pulling on the rod. "This… better… be… WORTH IT!" His arms were shaking with the effort of fighting the fish. "HAH!" With a massive groan of effort, he heaved, arms burning with exertion, and was rewarded with an object sailing over all their heads.

CRUNCH.

Everyone stared at the object that had landed on the middle of the deck.

Leo sighed.

"…I hate you, Eizen." He muttered.

Everyone else simultaneously shook their heads in disbelief.

There, standing happily in the hole it had punctured on the deck, was a gigantic ancient stone carving. A remarkably life-like sculpture that would surely make any well-respected archeologist drool.

It was a sculpture depicting a giant fish.

That wasn't edible.


	32. C30 - Trader

**Chapter 30 – Trader.**

It was a hot and humid summer day.

The sun shone happily above the green land surrounding the eastbound-westbound Danann Highway, basking the local flora and fauna with copious energy. Little creeks ran along the highway, crisscrossing endlessly as the road sloped downwards in a gentle curve down towards the eastern end of Midgand. Little copses of trees could be seen dotted along the scenery, and in the distance, towering mountains could be made out interrupting the horizon.

All in all, a very, very nice day.

"ACHOO!"

Of course, not for Leonex Davidson.

The man shuffled miserably at the very back of the group of misfits travelling towards Stonebury in search of a possible therion, having been banished there for excessive sneezing and sniffing.

"As if I could control that…" Leo muttered sourly to himself, wiping a disgusting handkerchief over his nose. He glared at the surrounding natural splendor sourly. "…I hate allergies." He grumbled.

"You've said that already."

Leo looked over to see Eizen strolling next to him. He shrugged. "Doesn't mean it's not true." He had a thought and raised a curious eyebrow. "I don't suppose you have some sort of arte that cures allergies? A hay fever remedy of sorts?"

Eizen scoffed. "I'm an Earth Malak." He pointed out. "The only remedy I can offer you is perhaps a very sharp rock to the head."

"…I might take you up on that offer." Leo sniffed again.

"What are you doing asking a  _malak_  for remedies?"

Magilou abruptly butted in to the conversation, shoving her way in between the two men. "Everyone who's anyone knows that in terms of instant pain relief sources, the witch is the only one." Her back straightened and she posed proudly. "And it just so happens that your favorite witch here is  _famous_ for her allergy remedies!"

Eizen gave her a look. "Somehow, I doubt that."

Leo grunted. "What remedies are we talking here? Potions? Spells? Blood rituals?" He held up a restrictive finger. "Just for the record, I'm not sacrificing more than 5 babies. That's where I draw the line."

Magilou cackled. "Oh no! Nothing as tedious as that." She grinned toothily. "I have a surefire method of curing your hay fever with just a simple spell! Instant! Won't take more than five seconds! Guaranteed! I could do it now, if you like."

Eizen glanced at Leo. "You're not seriously considering this, are you?"

The man glanced warily at Magilou. "There's no… side effects, right?" Leo asked nervously. "It just cures allergies? For how long? Can it be repeated? What specific allergens does it target?"

Magilou just shrugged. "Who knows." She stated loftily.

Leo facepalmed. "…Fine. Why the hell not, you only live once."

Eizen sighed. "I guess I can't argue that point."

He readied himself. "Alright. Go for it." He closed his eyes and waited.

"Ahah!" Magilou laughed mockingly. "What? Now? But you haven't paid me yet silly!"

Leo's eye twitched.

Her eyes narrowed predatorially. "Like I said, I'm well known for being a very,  _very_ good remedy giver. Receiving services from a witch as well-known and as practiced as myself isn't going to be cheap." She pointed an index finger to her temple happily. "Naturally."

Eizen splayed his hands. "So that's your game."

Leo sighed. "Come on! Don't you feel any remorse?! Picking on the sick for your own personal gain?" He moaned, wiping his nose.

Magilou grinned shamelessly. "Nope!"

"Yeah, I figured." Leo rubbed his temples in agitation.

The group continued to walk, the path before them now evening out after the slope they had been going down. The numerous creeks had merged together to form a small river that followed the road doggedly, curving around copses of trees and shrubbery. The world around them was filled with the sound of flowing water, birds calling to one another, and the insects buzzing in the summer heat.

"ACHOO!"

Leo wiped his nose savagely. "FINE!" He relented with a moan. "How much?!" He pulled out his (depressingly light) personal sack of gald.

Magilou casually twined her hands behind her neck. "50 gald." She grinned.

Rokurou's ear twitched. He turned to the three of them, slowing his steps to match theirs. "You just want to make up for that 50 gald you lost to me." He accused blandly.

"Who can say?" The witch commented lightly. "This is just the market price for today. Tomorrow, it might be higher, might be lower. This is simply the most optimal price to match supply and demand at the given moment. Simply economics, my dear daemon."

Rokurou gave the witch a flat look. He glanced over at Leo. "You're not seriously considering this, are you?"

Eizen grunted. "That's what I said." He pointed out.

"So, what's this about now?"

The four of them glanced over to find Velvet slowing her steps to match theirs, her eyebrow raised.

Magilou explained lightly, "Little Leo over here has grown tired of the sniffles and has decided to enlist my services to cure his hay fever." She grinned.

Velvet looked extremely skeptical. "You… can do that?"

"Who knows." Magilou hummed in response.

The therion facepalmed. "Leo… you're not seriously considering this, are you?"

The man in question sighed, counted out 50 gald, and held out the coins to Magilou sourly. "Take it. Make me better." He ordered dourly.

"What's going on?"

Everyone looked over to see Eleanor, Laphicet, and Hawk trotting over, having noticed the rest of the group chatting behind them. Eleanor blinked at the sight of the proffered money. "Did Magilou actually win a bet?" She asked in astonishment.

Velvet shook her head. "The idiot's resorting to desperate clinically-untested remedies for his allergies." She waved her hand dismissively. "Magilou says she can cure his allergies for 50 gald. He's doing it."

Laphicet's eyes were wide. "Magilou!?" He glanced up at the witch in amazement. "You can do that?!" His awe was tangible.

"Who knows." Magilou shrugged.

Eleanor groaned, cradling her forehead with her palm. "…Leo. I swear. You're not seriously considering this, are you?"

Hawk huffed disdainfully at his master's gullibility.

Leo gritted his teeth forcefully as he turned his gaze to Magilou. "…Make me better." He ordered.

"You're going to regret this." Velvet muttered lowly.

Eizen shrugged. "It's his choice."

Magilou couldn't be happier as she swiped the money from Leo's hand in the blink of an eye, twirling around. "Much obliged! Remember! Magilou's Magnificent Malady Cures has a cure for everything!" She coughed, "All sales final."

"Wait. What?"

Magilou grinned. "Okay!" She declared, facing the man. She shoved a finger in his direction. "Are you ready, my good sir?! Are you ready to be relieved of your worldly burdens and ascend to the next level of consciousness?!"

"Huh? No…?"

"Good!" Magilou hopped on one foot. "Now! Prepare to be amazed!" She closed her eyes in concentration. The air around her shimmered with power.

Eizen blinked.

Rokurou exchanged a glance with Hawk.

Velvet's eyes narrowed.

Eleanor lifted an eyebrow.

Laphicet's eyes were wide.

Leo's face already spoke of pure regret.

" **MAGICAZAM!"** The witch leapt up and pointed to the left with a wink.

Silence.

Hawk cocked his head in confusion.

Leo sighed, breaking the silence. "That was pointless, wasn't it?" He asked in resignation, already knowing the answer.

Eizen shrugged carelessly. "We warned you."

Laphicet cocked his head worriedly. "Magilou?" He asked uncertainly. "Didn't you say that magickazam means you don't care what happens next?"

Magilou chirped, "Yep! A pointless spell for a pointless worry." The gald in her hands disappeared with a poof. "So! Satisfied?" She asked her latest patron/victim eagerly.

Leo just slumped dejectedly to the floor in response. "…I've got buyer's remorse." He muttered sourly.

Velvet scoffed. "What did you expect? Honestly."

Eleanor shook her head in exasperation. "I have to agree. What were you thinking Leo?"

Rokurou laughed. "Desperation pushes a man to quite the lengths." He commented sagely.

Magilou smirked victoriously. "Well, I myself am quite pleased with how it turned out! Pleasure doing business good sir!" She chortled as she trotted off, humming a tune to herself.

"That wasn't business. That was thievery." Leo muttered sourly. "Fucking marketing jargon…" He froze.

"ACHOO!"

Eleanor eyed her former pupil as he groaned, wiping his nose at length. "Honestly Leo, I worry about you sometimes. Will you  _ever_  find a way to get over your allergies?"

"Who knows." Leo muttered sourly.

Suddenly, Hawk's ears perked. He let out his signature growl. Everyone was instantly on guard.

Velvet glanced at the pup. "What's wrong?" She asked urgently.

Rokurou scanned the surrounding area carefully. "Might be daemons. Might be exorcists." He pointed out.

Laphicet knelt down next to the wolf. "Come on Hawk! Lead us to 'em!" He urged.

The wolf yipped and took off down the highway, the rest of the group hot on his heels.

* * *

Further down, the Danann Highway dipped down into a ravine, curving around and around aimlessly to the very bottom with a wagon-friendly grade. From the entrance to the ravine, one could see the entirety of the sprawling highway weaving its way down and down into the depths until it finally exited the bottom of the ravine into plains. It was a breathtaking sight of natural splendor.

"HELP!"

The cry echoed off the walls of the ravine alongside similar shouts of alarm as the members of the trading caravan ran away frantically, abandoning their goods in favor of living. Hot on their heels was a massive horde of a variety of daemons, quickly gaining ground on their quarry. The monsters were steadily weaving their way up the road towards the abandoned wagons and the living humans scrambling in vain to get up the hill.

High up above them on an earlier section of the highway, Leo took in the scene anxiously.

"We've gotta help." He announced, gripping his rifle and clicking the safety off.

The rest of the group caught up to him.

Velvet's eyes narrowed as they spied the pack of travelers in peril, and the massive horde of daemons threatening them. "…It's not our problem." She stated firmly. "I won't take the unnecessary risk of rushing in."

"Cold." Rokurou commented.

"But completely and utterly expected." Magilou pointed out lightly.

"This is bad." Eizen analyzed succinctly. "Those travelers are going to be ripped to shreds in minutes. There isn't an exorcist outpost for kilometers around."

Laphicet urged, "We've gotta do something!"

Eleanor hefted her spear. "I agree." She looked urgently to the therion. "Velvet, please."

Velvet shook her head. "Remember who we are. Those people might end up reporting us to the Abbey if we save them."

Leo's fists curled. This wasn't right.

He whirled around to face off against the daemon. "What, so we let them die?!" He shook his head harshly, slashing a hand firmly in the air. "If you want to stand there and watch innocent people die you can do so." He snarled lowly. "I for one, won't."

Velvet's eyes narrowed. "Leo..." She growled warningly.

Leo met her eyes. He wouldn't back down. Not on this. "I'm going, Velvet." He stated firmly. "The world might see me as a bad guy, but I sure as hell don't."

Another terrified chorus of screams echoed through the ravine.

Eleanor suddenly moved to Leo's side and turned to face the leader of their group. "Velvet, these people need to be helped. If we have the ability to save them, we must. It's as simple as that. We can deal with the consequences later."

Laphicet glanced briefly between the two before running towards Eleanor and Leo. He turned to the therion. "Yeah! Come on Velvet!" He urged. "We've gotta help them! Please!"

Velvet held the kid's desperate gaze.

She glanced at Leo's determined stance.

And then she sighed.

With a scoff of frustration, the woman waved the three of them off in resignation, clearly giving them leave to do whatever the hell they wanted to.

Laphicet beamed back at her. "Let's go guys!" He urged. The three of them ran off, headed down the slope towards the travelers.

Magilou grinned. "Always the softie at heart, aren'tcha Velvet." She cooed.

"Shut it."

Rokurou smirked. "Hey, look at it this way, Velvet. More training is always better, no matter what!" He looked at the witch. "Let's go Magilou. They'll need help."

She shrugged. "I suppose I shouldn't let my only source of income die. Alright, fine." She gestured heroically into the air "Let us be off!"

"Bet you 50 gald we win." Rokurou proposed slyly.

"Oh hush."

The two of them ran after the others down the highway at full tilt, headed to save the travelers' lives.

"Honestly." Velvet muttered sourly. "You'd think  _we_ were the good guys."

Eizen just shrugged in response. "Come on." He urged.

Velvet sighed again, before following the rest of 'her' group.

Together, the group sprinted down the slope urgently as the screams grew louder.

* * *

Trader Vincent was not having a good day.

No, in fact, it was a bloody terrible day, thank you for asking.

He screamed in frustration, looking over his shoulder at the horde of daemons charging at him and the rest of his company. His eyes flew to the others running alongside him; specifically, his daughter. "Zara!" He shouted at the trader-in-training. "I… I have a plan!" He huffed.

Zara glanced anxiously at her father. "You'd better… not be thinking of anything stupid!" She yelled petulantly, glancing nervously back at the gaining daemons.

Vincent gave her a trademark goofy grin. "Not at all… Just plannin' on… sacrificing myself for everyone else." He huffed casually.

"Father!" Zara yelled aghast.

He grunted, reaching over his shoulder for his trademark sledgehammer. "Zara, you know I'm the only one who has malak-infused metal on me. I'll take 'em down and give you guys time to run." He swore, nearly tripping on uneven ground. "…Ugh… There should be… an exorcist outpost a few kilometers south. Follow the highway until you reach the crossroads and head south. I'm… countin' on you to lead the rest of them to safety."

He tried his best to not show his fear in his last moments in front of his daughter and on this world. He met her eyes with a bittersweet smile. "You know I love you, Zara. It was… an honor to be your father." He breathed.

His daughter had tears in her eyes. "Father…!" She shook her head firmly, wiping her tears.

He was counting on her.

She met his eyes firmly. "I'll do you proud, father."

Vincent had a bittersweet smile on his face. "That's my girl." He whispered.

With those last words spoken, the man suddenly skidded to a stop, hefting his sledgehammer. He didn't look back.

Neither did his daughter. "Come on, guys!" She yelled at the other members of the caravan; her family.

The other traders looked over at the man in shock. "What the hell is he doing?!" "Vincent!" "That's suicide!"

Vincent paid them no mind. He shouted at those hateful monsters threatening his family, "Come on you bloody bastards! Come taste some Abbey-forged steel and some Midgand strength!" He hefted his sledgehammer intimidatingly high. "I'll take you all down with me!"

Zara shouted, "He's buying us time! Let's go!"

A woman shouted at the man's back, "Vincent! You bastard! You want me to raise your daughter by myself?!"

Vincent smirked, not looking back. "'Course Sis! Have fun with the little rascal. She's a handful, that one!"

His sister replied, "I'll never forgive you!"

"I don't need you to. Just take care of her for me, would you?" He yelled.

"You'd better believe I will!" The woman yelled.

Zara urged, "Let's go!"

Vincent hardened his stance as the daemons grew perilously close, howling and snarling. All that mattered was that his family was behind him. "Come on you bastards!" He yelled.

And then the daemons were upon him.

Vincent's world became one of blood and gore; violence and mania. His entire existence dangled upon a thread; everything depended on the happenings within sledgehammer's reach of him. With a fierce roar, the trader bashed the skull out of any monster foolish enough to attempt to get close to the man.

Human, daemon, malak, or even Innominat Himself; all should know to fear the wrath of a father whose daughter was in danger.

Everywhere bled, everything burned, and everything stung. That was good. That meant he was still alive. That meant he could still protect his daughter.

"RAAAH!" He roared with all the same ferocity as before, swinging his hammer and driving the rest of the surviving wolves off, giving him some room to breathe. The smell of the blood had riled the horde. The snarling of the daemons filled the air.

Gasping for breath, clutching at a tear in his shoulder, Vincent let out a breath. "That's it. I've done my best. Sorry, Zara. Your old dad's no exorcist." He glanced around warily. "I'm happy with this, I think. Not the best ending, but I'll take it." His frown morphed into a nostalgic smile.

"See you later, you little rascal." He muttered sadly.

CRACK!

Vincent startled as out of nowhere, a vicious daemon slumped to the ground, a hole in its head.

"Father!"

That voice. That beautiful, lovely voice.

Vincent turned to seek his daughter over the shoulders of the daemons all shuffling in surprise. He gasped as he took in her form, running towards him. She had come back. That  _moron_!

"ZARA!" The massive man bellowed angrily. "I TOLD YOU TO RUN!"

Zara shook her head as she ran, gesturing wildly. "Father! Watch out!" She yelled, her eyes wide and frantic.

Vincent cursed as he barely dodged a swooping falcon's lethal claws. The daemon flapped frantically to pull up from the missed dive.

CRACK!

Only to suddenly fall limp as another crack of that strange sound rang throughout the ravine again, evidently causing the falcon to plummet to the floor and crack its neck on the hard pavement.

"MOVE!" A foreign feminine voice snarled, startling Vincent into action.

He complied just as a strangely-dressed woman in a black coat leapt out of nowhere directly into the ring of daemons, gauntlet-blade extended. The woman deftly slashed her blade horizontally in a calculated stroke that decapitated two ape daemons at once. Their heads dropped unceremoniously to the grounds alongside their headless bodies.

"Wh-who the hell-?!" The trader stammered.

"Shut up and stay alive." The woman growled lowly, easily dodging swipes of two werewolf daemons before slicing the two of them with a broad slash and kicking them away with ironclad boots. "Talk later." The woman whipped to the side to engage another group of daemons.

"R-right." Vincent shook his head and took the woman's presence in stride, swinging his massive hammer into a nearby daemon. "You're a damned hero, you know that?" He yelled over the monster's screech of pain.

"Heh." For some reason, the woman had an amused smile at that remark, backflipping agilely while slashing at a daemon with a hidden blade in her boot. "If you say so."

A call rang out over the clamor of battle.

"Velvet! Crossfire right! Two!"

"Go!" The woman responded, gracefully leaping to the left.

CRACK!

CRACK!

Vincent gaped as the two daemons the woman was fighting fell to the ground, clearly dead.

"Watch it!"

The man recoiled as a man dressed in a black trench coat appeared in front of him, fending off a daemon with his bare fists. Somehow, his strength was so strong that the daemon recoiled, stumbling back into another daemon.

"Eizen! Get back!"

A young voice called over the clamor. The man named Eizen instantly leapt backwards in response. Not two seconds later the daemon he was fighting was abruptly engulfed in astonishingly brilliant flame, eliciting screeches of agony.

"Now that's what I'm talking about!" Vincent turned his head to see a man dressed in purple slashing at groups of daemons with a damned grin on his face. "Nice one, Laphicet!"

Vincent's eyes found a boy (A malak?!) in the corner of his eye, who nodded in response before initiating another arte.

"Phi!" The woman in the black coat who had saved him from before yelled out sharply, "Where's Magilou and Eleanor?" She leapt backwards as a giant ape daemon smashed the ground in front of her, completely unfazed by the close call.

"They're busy fighting a second group! A bunch of daemons broke off and attacked the trader girl!"

Breaking out of his shock, Vincent grasped onto the important information. His daughter was in danger! Cursing, the father leapt into action, re-shouldering his sledgehammer and charging up the highway.

"ZARA!" He roared, running straight into a pack of daemons between him and his daughter.

"What the hell are you-?! IDIOT!" The woman cursed him as he ran off. "Leo!" She shouted urgently.

Heedlessly, running headfirst towards the daemons, Vincent roared, "GET OUT OF MY WAY!" He readied himself to bull through the line, regardless of how many wounds he would sustain.

CRACK!

BANG!

CRACK!

BANG!

The man shielded his eyes as flashes of heat and fire suddenly imploded on the daemons in front of him, clearing a path for him. Through the smoke and powder in the air, Vincent saw his daughter, quivering in fear as the woman (an exorcist!) protecting her was being overwhelmed by a pack of lycanthropes.

Capitalizing on the opportunity, the man charged through the smoke, leaping over the dead bodies of the daemons and charging by the other daemons stunned by the detonations.

Yet still, he wasn't running fast enough.

His eyes widened in horror as he saw the daemons slipping around the defenses of the overwhelmed exorcist and lunged towards his little girl. His poor, helpless, little Zara.

He wouldn't get there in time.

"ZARA!" He cried.

"Rising Falcon!"

Vincent's relief could not be greater as that woman from before dove inhumanly rapidly from the air right into the path of the lunging lycanthropes and tore into them with a fierce savagery and saving his little girl.

He sprinted up to his little girl as the woman continued to fend the daemons off, hugging his daughter tightly. "Damnit! You little rascal! I told you to run!" He scolded as he clutched her, as if to never let go again.

Zara hugged her father back just as lovingly, trembling with relief. "Well," she chuckled wetly. "You said I'm a handful, didn't you?"

His father laughed, crying tears of relief.

They stood there, whole once more.

Suddenly a stranger tapped him awkwardly on the shoulder.

"Er, it's nice that you're together and all, but uh…" The two turned to the man who would dare intrude on such a moment. The man winced at the simultaneous death glares sent his way and pointed weakly at the daemons threatening them on all sides, being barely driven off by his fellow fighters. "You might wanna save it for later." He remarked weakly.

Abruptly, he blinked as he noticed something out of the corner of his eye and spun around yelling, "Hawk!"

A malak suddenly appeared before him with a howl and cast a fireball arte, obliterating some daemons getting close to the father and daughter. The wolf snarled fiercely, guarding his master and the people he had chosen to protect.

Vincent gaped at the man who was evidently an exorcist. "Just who the hell are you people?!" He glanced around wildly at the assortment of strangely-dressed talented strangers that had saved their lives.

"I ran into them on the way up." Zara muttered quietly. "They were already coming to help."

The man aimed his strange-looking weapon forward with practiced ease. "The name's Leo." He explained, squinting his eyes. "I'd shake your hands but…" His finger slid into a little metal ring at the bottom of his weapon.

CRACK!

BOOM!

The weapon suddenly blew up in the man's hand, causing an explosion just like the ones that had occurred before blew up a few daemons that had been getting alarmingly close. The detonation cut off the momentum of the daemons and sent blood spewing everywhere onto the grass.

The man glanced over his shoulder as the screeches of pain began anew, his weapon smoking hot. "I'm a bit occupied at the moment." He finished wryly.

"Leo!" The man evidently named Leo turned to see the woman in the black coat leap over to him urgently. "Give me a hand. Scattershot." She indicated a large group of daemons charging over, having gotten past the others.

Leo grinned. "Sure thing, Velvet." He pushed a lever on his weapon and pushed some strangely colored metal objects in. He smirked, eyeing the woman's strangely bandaged arm. "Not so handy anymore, are ya?"

The woman, Velvet, gave him a terrifying glare in response.

Leo, instantly cowed, straightened and gave the woman a salute. "Yes ma'am! Right away ma'am!" He snapped his weapon to his shoulder. "To war!" He roared dramatically, charging forwards.

She rolled her eyes and leapt inhumanly quickly towards the daemons as the man knelt down and aimed his weapon at the monsters.

CA-CRACK!

CA-CRACK!

Vincent and Zara stared as the two made short work of a group of daemons that would make even the most seasoned of orderlies tremble in fear.

"They're so strong…" Vincent muttered.

Zara shook her head in amazement. "They saved us." She breathed.

Vincent squeezed her shoulder tightly. "…That they did."

In the end, it took the group of strange people minutes to cull the horde of daemons. Not a single one got close to his Vincent's daughter.

"Hey, Earth Malak!" Leo shouted. "I'd like one order of sharp rock to the head, please!" He grunted as he rolled out of the path of a bashing root attached to a massive tree daemon. He cursed as he scrambled out of the way of a follow-up. "Now, preferably!" He shouted.

"On it! Stalagmite!" Eizen slammed his fist into the ground while oozing energy.

In response, the ground abruptly began to shake alarmingly, localized around the tree daemon.

Struggling in vain to right itself in the earth, the daemon was suddenly violently pierced with a ragged collection of sharp rocks straight through the trunk, killing it instantly. Its roots fell limp. The entire rock formation fell still, leaving an absurd-looking sculpture piercing a rotten daemon body in the middle of the Danann Highway.

And just like that, the last daemon of the entire horde had been killed.

Silence fell in the ravine; a sharp contrast from the clamor that had filled it moments before.

Leo let out a huge breath, lifting his body up from the dirt, having dove to the ground when the arte had taken hold.

"Now  _that_ … was an experience." He caught his breath.

Hawk trotted over and whined, healing his master's minor wounds.

Velvet sighed, helping the man up to his feet. "You're such a handful, you know that?" She gave him a disdainful look of irritation.

Leo grinned wryly, glancing down at her bandaged arm. "You know what's a handful? Not being able to use your overpowered daemon arm in combat, I'm sure."

Naturally, she couldn't've used it, as the daemons of the group had decided to try their best to remain as human-like as possible to not arouse any suspicion from the people they were saving.

The therion gave him a dark look. "I can use it on you later just fine." She growled.

Leo waved her threat off good-naturedly. "Bah."

Instead, he looked at the people they'd saved. A smile curved on his face.

All the traders had reunited and had returned to their wagons and were currently carefully inspecting their stocks. The relief in their faces was palatable. In particular, his eyes sought out the hulking father and his daughter, seemingly inseparable after the man's brave attempt to sacrifice himself for the others. A sacrifice that didn't have to happen, thanks to the group. He smiled brightly.

"…Thanks for helping to save them, Velvet." He intoned gratefully.

The daemon sighed, waving her hand dismissively. "Don't get any ideas. I just didn't want to lose a somewhat competent fighter over nothing. That's all."

Leo grinned. He slapped the back of his friend, to her displeasure. "Uhuh." He shook his head soberly. "To think, I was once as helpless as these folks, before all of this." He turned a soft gaze onto Velvet. "Doing what is right... I wish it was always this easy of a choice." He muttered softly. He shook his head. "Anyways, come on. Let's go make sure those people are alright."

"You go do that." She waved a bandaged hand. "I'll make sure the rest of the group are fine."

"Actually, we are." The two turned to see the rest of the group walking over, looking none the worse for wear after the battle. Eleanor's eyes were bright. "Thankfully, the same can be said for the rest of the traders as well." She turned worried. "Well, most of them."

Laphicet nodded seriously. "A few of the daemons got through and a few got seriously hurt. We should go check up on them now." He looked up at the therion. "Let's go Velvet!"

Velvet shook her head in resignation. "Alright..."

The group trotted over to the traders.

The chatter stopped as the people took in the appearances of their saviors in their entire splendor. The man who had bravely sacrificed himself in the beginning stepped forward determinedly.

"You've saved us." He commented firmly, looking at everyone; the woman in the dark coat in particular. "We traders are in your debt."

His daughter ran up and put herself next to her father. "Yes." She agreed. "Thank you all so much! If not for you…" She gripped her father's hand tightly. "My father would've…"

The man put a gentle hand on her shoulder and looked up at the group. "…Thank you. From the bottoms of our hearts. My name is Vincent. This is my daughter, Zara." He gestured to the wagons behind the group. "If you should need anything; anything at all, please, let us know. We traders hate being in debt."

Velvet shrugged. "We'll take any gald you have on hand." She said callously.

Eleanor narrowed her eyes. "Velvet!" She scolded. "They need that money!"

"Hey, he said anything." The daemon pointed out apathetically.

Vincent was about to open his mouth to reply when suddenly a feminine voice called out. "Deal."

Everyone turned to let a woman through to the front; evidently the leader of this band of traders. She walked up straight to the front of the group and fixed her eyes on the black-coated woman. "For there is no price too great for the life of a family member. Isn't that right, Velvet?"

Velvet blinked in confusion.

Suddenly, it hit her. That face, that voice. That occupation.

"…Amy?" She murmured. "The trader?"

Amy grinned. "In the flesh!" She nodded sagely, "It's been a long time since I last sold you berries, hasn't it? Three years, I think?"

Vincent blinked. "Amy? You know her?"

"I used to trade at her village, a long, long time ago. Before the Advent." Amy explained. "She was the first person I sold Stonebury stock to back in the day, actually!"

Leo blinked. "Oh!" He glanced at Velvet. "I remember her! You used to shop at her stall in the autumn with Ar…" He trailed off abruptly.

Velvet glanced at him before letting out awkwardly, "It's… nice to see you again, Amy."

Amy smiled. "Likewise. Although I can't say I ever imagined we'd meet up like this. Thanks for saving our hides." She held out a left hand.

Velvet started. "Oh." She grasped the woman's hand with her bandaged hand on instinct. "It was nothing." She let out.

Amy shook her hand happily. "Shush. Now! Let's talk money. How much can you hold? We've got thousands of gald onboard." She let go of the hand and stepped back, gesturing to the two covered wagons. "We're just coming back from selling our wares in Midgand, so gald is pretty much all we have."

Zara put her hand on the woman's shoulder uncertainty. "Aunt Amy? Are you sure?"

Amy nodded firmly. "Like I said, no price is too great."

"You know what?" Leo interrupted. "You can keep the money." Ignoring Velvet's sharp glare, the man elaborated, "Instead, I want you all to treat us to dinner at Stonebury."

"Huh?" Amy was caught off-guard.

"Leo!" Velvet hissed, pulling him aside and back to the group. "What the hell are you doing?!" She demanded.

Leo hissed back equally fiercely, "There's an exorcist checkpoint up ahead. I don't think we look exactly incognito, do we? Our travel papers can only get us so far before someone puts two and two together and recognize the most infamous group in Midgand." He shook his head. "With how little travelers there are headed to the Aldina Plains, our group is sure to be made if we go it alone. I'm simply giving us an excuse to travel with them."

Velvet sighed. "…I suppose you have a point." She glared at him. "But next time, let us know in advance. Don't just go making plans without consulting the rest of us. I won't allow it."

Leo nodded. "Alright. Noted."

With that having been decided, the two walked back to the waiting travelers.

"So?" Amy asked. "What do you guys want?"

Velvet explained, "Dinner at Stonebury, like he said." She shrugged helplessly. "What can I say? Leo here is a sucker for Stonebury berries."

Leo grinned sheepishly. "They're fantastic in quiches."

Amy laughed. "Oh! So, it was that!" She shook her head. "I'm afraid I'm no good at baking…" She remembered something. "But hey! Velvet! Weren't you really good at cooking for your brother of yours?" She clapped. "How about you guys come with us to Stonebury, and we'll give you free range of our stock at home to cook whatever you want? All the berried quiche you could ever want!"

Laphicet drooled. "Berried quiche?! That sounds amazing!"

Trader Vincent blinked. He turned to Eleanor. "Your malak has quite the personality. He's quite different from the other malaks I've seen in town."

Before Eleanor could speak, Amy interrupted, "Really? I've seen a bunch of malaks like him." She grinned. "Maybe you should leave the house a bit more, Vincent."

The man glared playfully at the woman. "Shut it, sis. You should be glad I came with you this time." He glanced meaningfully at the dead daemons.

Amy gave the man a genuine pat on the shoulder. "And I am. Thanks for your sacrifice, Vincent. You make me proud to be your sister."

Eizen remarked quietly, "…You've got quite the brother there." His eyes seemed distant.

Vincent puffed his chest out. "You're damned right she does." He huffed.

Zara gave him a whack. "You're preening."

"Ow! Come on! Can't you be nice to the guy who sacrificed himself for your wellbeing?!"

"…You're going to hold this over me for the rest of my life, aren't you?"

Vincent grinned shamelessly. "Yep. You'd better believe it you little rascal."

Zara sighed.

Amy shook her head and turned back to their saviors. "Anyways," she drawled, getting back on track, "We accept your offer." She stated firmly.

"I suppose this means we're headed in the same direction." She cocked her head. "I don't suppose we could travel together?" She sighed, looking over at the decomposing bodies of the daemons. "There aren't enough exorcists these days to go around. We could really use your help to make sure we don't stray that close to death on the way there. We'd pay you, of course."

Velvet nodded sharply. "That'll work."

Amy brightened. "Awesome! If you can travel with us for at least until the exorcist checkpoint, that would be great."

Leo bobbed his head. "Sounds like a plan. We might be able to accompany you until halfway to Stonebury and meet you there later." He blinked. "Oh. And I'm Leo, by the way. I'm a friend of Velvet's from Aball."

Amy looked intrigued. "Oh! I never saw you around back then, did I?"

Velvet rolled her eyes, the memory surfacing in her mind. "You did, I'm pretty sure."

"No… I don't think I did." Amy scrunched her face, staring at Leo's.

Velvet promptly slammed her ironclad boot onto Leo's boot.

CRUNCH.

"AHHH!" Leo screamed out in pain, hopping on one foot. "WHY?!" He squealed.

Amy stared. "…OH! I recognize that scream!" She blinked, pointing at the man. "You're the one who was being chased around by that pig that day! The one that nobody tried to help!"

"Oh, come on!" Leo whined. "Is that my only damn memorable personality trait?!"

Velvet smirked. "Yep." She put simply.

Amy's high-pitched laughter echoed through the ravine. "Well then! In that case, it's nice to meet you again, Leo!" She giggled. "I'd offer to shake your hand, but I don't want to get it dirty…"

Leo sighed. "I regret this decision already."

Velvet smirked. "I'm starting to like it, myself."

Leo gave the woman a sly grin. "I thought you would."

Velvet blinked.

Amy clapped her hands. "Alright! It's settled!" She slipped seamlessly into a different persona, whirling around and ordering to the watching traders, "Okay everyone, let's get moving! Finish up fixing what you've gotta fix and checking the inventories within the next ten minutes or you're not getting any quiche tonight!"

Vincent saluted. "Will do, sis! We traders never forget our debts!"

Zara grinned. "Come on, father! Let's go grab the horses!"

The group watched as the road around the caravan suddenly whirled in activity. Each person had evidently been assigned a separate task and went about it with fervor; each clearly wanting to do everything in their power to pay off their debt to their saviors.

Laphicet was awed. "Wow… Look at all of them go!"

Rokurou walked up to Velvet. "You know her?" He pointed at the woman giving heated orders and commands, strutting through the traders with an air of power.

Velvet nodded. "An old face, nothing more."

Magilou spoke up, "Funny how old faces can have an effect on someone, even if they've changed so much." She grinned. "'Amy' here seems quite the individual."

Eleanor nodded, "I'm impressed. To be able to shoulder the burden that comes with risking trade between the frontier town of Stonebury and the capital with such grace is a trait that few have."

Eizen put a hand to his chin in thought. "Aye. Although I'm surprised she didn't ask more questions about our appearances or our history… or anything at all, really."

Leo blinked. "Huh. You're right." He glanced at the therion. "Velvet doesn't exactly look the same as she did three years ago…"

He shrugged. "Maybe she just concluded that Velvet's going through one of those 'phases,' ya know?"

Velvet's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Oh. And what 'phases' are we talking about here?"

Magilou chortled. "The phases between wanting to kill and eat a certain exorcist or not, of course!"

"Hey, don't encourage her!" Leo protested.

Rokurou looked around. "Still," he observed, "It's a good idea to hire us." He glanced at the decaying bodies of the daemons they'd killed. "If we weren't here, they would've all been slaughtered, most likely."

Laphicet nodded. "Then it's a good thing we were here!"

"…" Velvet gave the malak a look.

"Excuse me. I'm Trader Vincent… I, uh, have something to say."

The therion startled as she turned to see the big man from before tentatively approaching her. "What is it?" She asked with a raised eyebrow.

The man gathered his wits and abruptly bowed. "T… Thank you! Thank you so much! Bloody hell, I was going to die…" He squeezed his eyes shut. "You… you saved my life. Both mine and Zara's. Thanks to you, I can still see my little daughter's smile. I can still see her grow up to be a full-fledged trader. You've given us our lives." He straightened and grinned happily, tears in his eyes. "I am eternally in your debt." He stated firmly.

Velvet blinked, eyes wide.

"Please. If there's anything I can do to repay you, let me know! I'll do anything! I'm a trader, after all!" He pleaded determinedly. "There is no price that I won't pay to see my daughter's smile again!"

Leo watched as Velvet was evidently utterly taken aback by the man's profound gratitude. She blinked, a deer caught in headlights. A smile formed on his face.

He elbowed her.

That seemed to do the trick as she glared heatedly at him before turning her gaze back on the pleading father.

"That won't be necessary." She stated firmly. "Your sister has already promised us ample payment." She waved an uncaring hand. "All you need to do to repay me is to promise to keep your little girl safe. That's all."

Vincent stared at her in disbelief at her generosity.

He shook his head. "…You're damned right I will." He offered a hand. "Thank you. Velvet, right?"

The therion nodded, taking his hand and shaking it firmly. "That's right."

The man nodded determinedly. "I'm naming my second daughter after you." He stated firmly. "You can count on it." He grinned toothily. "Thank you again, Velvet. I'll never forget what you've done for us. I'll see you around!" With one last bow, the man ran off, back to help his daughter with the horses.

Velvet could not have looked more dumbstruck.

Suddenly, Magilou burst out laughing. "He's going to name his daughter after you! Hahaha! What a terrible choice! That poor man!" She lamented.

Leo grinned. "Actually, it doesn't seem too bad." He grinned slyly. "It's quite the noble name."

Eleanor giggled, glancing at a shell-shocked Velvet. "I'm actually tempted to agree with you there, Leo."

Hawk yipped happily.

Laphicet smiled. "He seems like a great dad…"

"He knowingly sacrificed himself for the survival of his child and the rest of his trading family." Rokurou pointed out. "Seems like a pretty swell dad to me."

"Aye." Eizen grunted. "To think he would go so far as to promise to name his next daughter after his savior…" He shook his head. "These people are a close-knit family, blood relations or not."

Velvet abruptly shook her head, shaking herself from her state of shock. "What the hell." She growled. "I can't even fathom…"

Leo grinned, slinging an arm around her shoulder. "Come on, Velvet!" He chirped cheekily. "Look at it this way." He drawled. "Here he is, about to die for his family, when his life is saved by an angel." He shook his head. "From his perspective, you're a hero, plain and simple. This was just his way of paying you back."

Velvet shrugged his arm off disdainfully. "Then he's a moron for doing so. If he saw what I really am…"

She shook her head, banishing the distraction from the task at hand. "It doesn't matter. We've done what we need to." She glanced at the rest of the group. "Come on. We should go see if anything needs doing."

"Awe!" Magilou cooed, "Look at the big bad daemon doing community service!"

Leo chuckled. "Hey, we're getting paid. That's all that matters."

Rokurou grinned. "That, and we'll be slipping through those exorcists at the checkpoint easier."

Eizen shrugged. "If that's the case, it would be best for all of us to aid in the trader's recovery."

"Let's go!" Laphicet exclaimed animatedly. "We can heal anybody who's still hurt, and make sure everyone's ready to travel."

Eleanor nodded determinedly. "I'll go discuss with Amy about the logistics of guard placements for the most optimal daemon detection and battle strategies."

Leo nodded. "That's not a bad idea. You go do that, Eleanor. Eizen, Rokurou, come with me and we can make any of the repairs that need doing."

Rokurou grinned, "Let's do it! Come on, Eizen. Let's see who can help the most people." He goaded.

Eizen smirked. "You're on."

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "Must you two make  _everything_  a competition?"

Magilou shrugged in mock dismay. "Argh, manual labor. Well, you all have fun!" she leaned on her hands. "I'm afraid I'd just get in the way, so I'll go ahead and find a place to take a nice nap in the meantime."

Leo glared. "Oh no you don't. You're in charge of distracting the children while we're working. Go juggle some balls or something." He shrugged dismissively.

The witch's eye twitched. "'…Juggle some balls?!'" She burst out indignantly. "Just who the hell do you think I am?! I'll have you know that…"

Velvet rubbed her temples as the rest of the group walked off, chattering incessantly.

"…Some villains we are." She muttered to herself, before shaking her head in resignation and following them.

Together, the group of villains dispersed between the two wagons and helped wherever they could, mingling with the traders whose lives they'd saved.

Somehow, that hot and humid summer day seemed just a tiny bit nicer.


	33. C31 - Dragon

**Chapter 31 – Dragon.**

The air was filled with the creaking of wagon wheels and the clacking of horse hooves. The group of traders and their hired guards made their way through the barely-tamed wilderness, following the volatile paved road of the Danann Highway. The sun was hot on their backs as the action of travel continued mechanically; an ever-present obligation to keep moving slowly forwards towards home.

Leo kept his eyes in the distance, visually raking through faraway copses of trees and shrubbery in constant vigilance against daemons. He and Hawk trotted alongside one of the two caravans in the convoy, having been strategically placed there by Eleanor and Amy. The rest of the group was spread out across the traders, each person placed in a position to maximize the defensibility of the convoy in the event of another ambush like the one that had happened earlier in the day.

Down by the man's feet, Hawk let out a drawn-out yawn with a whine of complaint.

Leo grinned down at the pup as he walked. "Yeah, I know Hawk." He agreed empathetically. "Come on. There're still some ways to go before the checkpoint. Hang in there." He encouraged.

His wolf nudged his leg in annoyance, ruffling his fur.

"Hey, don't complain. We are getting paid after all."

A whine.

Leo sighed. "…Alright fine." He conceded. "If you behave yourself, I'll make sure to buy you some treats when we get to Stonebury. Sound fair?"

Hawk instantly perked up, his tail wagging and eyes widening. He gave his master a determined yip.

Leo chuckled. "Spoiled mutt." He muttered affectionately.

The two continued to walk, trotting comfortably under the sun.

"Damnit!"

Leo blinked as the feminine swear registered in his ears. He turned to his front and found the trader's daughter Zara fiddling with something in her hands as she trotted forward mechanically. She was evidently not happy with her progress. Curiously, Leo noted the clockwork tools on her belt she was attempting to use. Those were rare to come by.

He glanced down at Hawk. "Keep watch, huh?"

The wolf huffed indignantly. He didn't need his useless master to keep him company anyways!

Zara swore again. "You little piece of shit…" She muttered, cursing her decidedly clumsy fingers.

"I don't think that's proper language for a young lady such as yourself, don't you think?"

The teenager turned to see the exorcist who was part of the group of travelers that had saved them trotting over, eyeing the object in her hands with evident curiosity. She sighed. "You sound just like my dad." She hesitated. "Your name is… Leo, right?"

"That's right." The man agreed with a friendly grin. "You're Zara, right? Vincent's daughter?"

Zara nodded in confirmation. "Thank you for your help, Leo. I really, really appreciate it. You and your group saved my stupid father…"

Her expression abruptly fell, remembering the fact that only a few hours ago, she had almost lost her father forever.

Leo gave a sad smile. "It's fine. I couldn't just stand by and do nothing. I'm just glad you guys are all alright."

He shook his head, changing the subject. "Say, what's that you're working on there that justifies such offensive vocabulary?" He gestured at the wooden box in her hands.

The trader's daughter abruptly remembered the item in her hand with disdain. "Oh." She glared at the object. "It's just a stupid music box that broke in the fight." She explained. She shook her head. "I just can't get it working again." She hefted the metal clockwork tool in her hand, roughly jabbing at the internals of the music box. "I suck at this." She muttered viciously over the clanking of metal bashing metal.

Leo's eye twitched.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" He yelled, shielding the poor machine from the frustrated daughter's assault with his hands. "You're going to break it!"

Zara blinked. "Are you good at this sort of stuff?" She asked.

"Kind of?" Leo tried modestly.

Zara instantly pushed the box and her tools at the man. "Can you fix it for me?!" She asked anxiously. Suddenly, she remembered her manners. "Oh… I'm afraid I don't have that much money…" She trailed off shyly, embarrassed.

Leo smiled gently. "That won't be necessary." He gingerly took the box from the woman's hands along with the clockwork tool. He examined the workings with a furrowed brow as they walked. "Hmm…" He asked Zara without looking at her, "Hand me a magnifying glass from your clockwork set, would you? 4th degree."

Zara blinked. "Oh!" She fumbled with the set at her belt and pulled out the corresponding tool. "Here."

Leo took the tool, his eyes fixed on the cogs. He held the glass over the box. "Hmm…" He muttered. "Did you figure out what was wrong with it?" He asked.

"Er… Not… particularly." Zara chuckled self-consciously. "I kinda just thought it might be some dirt in the cogs or something, and that if I just poked at it enough…"

Leo gave the young woman an incredulous look.

Zara felt the need to defend herself. "H-hey! Don't give me that!"

Leo sighed in exasperation. "There's a reason these mechanical devices are so expensive, you know." He turned his eye back onto the magnifying glass. "A single cog a millimeter out of place can break the whole thing. Hold this for me, would you?"

The trader's daughter blinked. "Alright, but should we stop walking for a second? Won't it be difficult to do such precise work while moving?"

Leo gave her the glass. "No, it's a quick fix." He hefted the tool in his hand, looking through the glass carefully. "Right… here."

Click.

With a series of clicks, the box in his hands came alive and the crank began to turn. A charming tune began to play, ringing out happily and flawlessly.

Zara's face lit up. "Oh Empyreans! Thank you!" She beamed as Leo handed her the singing box, holding it up to her cheek. She glanced at the grinning man. "I'm sorry… I don't know how to pay you…"

Leo waved her off. "It's no big deal. It was just a misaligned cog, nothing more." He smiled. "It's a charming tune." He commented.

Her face was soft. "You're good at this…" She sighed. "My mother was too, back when she was alive. That's why she made this for me for my 13th birthday." The daughter looked grateful beyond words. "…I honestly have no idea how to thank you, sir. For everything. If I had lost my father as well…" She shook her head, speechless at the mere notion of such a horrible world.

Leo's smile was genuine.

He sighed, looking off into the distance at the trader Vincent walking ahead of them, arguing heatedly with a fellow trader about something.

A loving father who was willing to sacrifice everything for his family.

"I remember when my father was alive." He muttered absently under his breath. "I loved him to death. At least in the beginning."

Zara blinked.

Leo continued, "When I was a kid, my father and I were inseparable." He smiled bittersweetly. "We'd spend weeks upon weeks just working together, wasting away in our little room of ours until my mother would storm in and scold the crap out of us."

The memories seeped in and out of his thoughts, warm as a sunbaked river.

Leo sighed. "Of course, that was before he changed." His eyes grew hard. "Before everything changed..."

The tinkling song of the jukebox ended.

He abruptly shook his head and met Zara's curious gaze. "Point is, you should treasure your moments with your father." He gave a soft smile. "That's how you can repay me."

Zara nodded firmly, recognizing the man's point. "I will. Count on it."

Her gaze drifted to her father further down the road, apparently gloating after having won his argument with his friend. She sighed. "To be honest, my father's been going through his own changes, too." She looked at the man who had helped her. "You saw him. Charging at the daemons heedless of his own safety."

Leo nodded. "It was heroic. Never seen anything like it. He loves you so much…"

Zara shook her head. "While I'm sure the idiot was thinking of me…" She sighed. "My father really hates daemons. Really,  _really_ hates daemons. To the point where he'd gladly kill himself if it meant taking some down with him."

Leo made the connection quickly. "…Was your mother killed by them?" He asked softly.

She nodded soberly. "Yeah. It's a common story these days, isn't it?" She cradled the music box in her hands. "To be honest… I despise them too. The monsters that know nothing but inflicting death and misery upon the world."

The man was silent.

 _This is just how people are._ He reminded himself quietly.

Zara sighed, breaking the silence. "…But  _I'm_  not willing to end myself over a silly hatred like that. Those daemons by the highway weren't even the real menace." She shook her head. "No, the real menace are those daemons who killed the High Priest."

Leo blinked. That wasn't the official story. "But I heard that the High Priest was just recovering from a bump on the head?"

"No!" The daughter shook her head fervently. "That's not true. I heard from a reputable source that he was  _murdered._ Assassinated by a group of daemons that infiltrated the Royal Villa in the dead of night!"

"No way."

Leo's flat tone was lost on the teen who nodded enthusiastically. "That's right! They say the daemons were all ten feet tall and had heads of wolves and the hooves of horses!" She gossiped in a low tone, "And not only that, I heard that these daemons were also the ones that escaped the prison island of Titania, razed Hellawes and sacked Vortigern!"

"Oh really?"

Leo registered Velvet's curious voice with surprise, finding the therion trotting over to the two of them with an eyebrow raised.

Zara took the appearance of the hardened woman with shock before finding her voice. "E-er, yeah." She remembered herself. "You're Velvet, right? Thank you as well for saving my father." She thanked profusely.

Velvet sighed at length, waving the thanks away.

"About those daemons," she got back on topic, "what do you know about them? Are they still on the loose?" She asked curiously.

Evidently rediscovering her rhythm in gossip, the shine returned to Zara's eyes. "That's the scariest part! They are!" She leaned in conspiratorially, eyes leaping between Velvet and Leo. "They say even the Legate Shigure of the Abbey couldn't handle them!" She hissed dramatically.

"Wow." Velvet noted dryly. "Sounds like a real nasty bunch of killer daemons."

Leo gave her a smirk. "Yeah. They're ten feet tall, with wolf heads."

"Don't forget the horse hooves!" Zara reminded heatedly.

Velvet returned Leo's smirk. She turned to the trader's daughter. "They sound horrible. Any idea where they could be?"

Zara, oblivious to the amusement of the two travelers, shook her head in terror. "That's the worst part! Nobody knows where they might pop up next!" She shuddered. "To think, they could be anywhere! We could even run into them on the Danann Highway right now!" Her gaze flew down the highway, as if the dreaded daemons could possibly have been be summoned by her very words.

"I'm trembling in terror." Leo remarked wryly. "One could only imagine what such horrific daemons could do to such a band of innocent travelers such as you people."

Velvet let out an amused scoff. "Oh yes. What ghastly horrors they could inflict indeed."

The two of them exchanged a smirk.

Zara eyed the pair of travelers in annoyance. "You don't believe me, do you?" She let out an indignant hmph. "Just wait until  _you_ people run into those daemons for yourselves! You'll regret ever doubting me when they're tearing you apart!"

The black-coated woman shrugged. "No, I believe you." She insisted as she waved a dismissive bandaged hand. "I just don't particularly care."

Leo chuckled. "Please. There's no daemon out there that's scarier than Velvet here." He smirked. "She's a real monster sometimes."

Velvet rolled her eyes in response.

Zara looked at her strangely. "Really?" She blinked, examining Velvet's appearance. "…Say, where are you guys from, anyways?"

Leo and Velvet exchanged a look.

Before either of them could respond however, a new voice rang out. "Eastgand."

All of them turned to find Amy walking over to their group with a grin. She gave her niece a friendly pat as she explained, "At least, Leo and Velvet are. I'm not sure about the rest of their little group." She shrugged, prompting the two in question.

Leo nodded. "Yeah. We're from Aball." He gestured to Velvet and himself. "The others in our group just ended up falling in with us." He shrugged. "I suppose we just became a group somewhere along the way in our travels."

Velvet shrugged helplessly in kind. "I'm  _still_  not entirely sure how it ended up this way."

"Hah!" Zara chuckled. "That's just like our group!" She exclaimed.

She gestured to the caravan. "We're all from all around the world. Aunt Amy, my father and I are all from Loegres, but we're traders for Stonebury."

Amy nodded. "We're all Stonebury folk, now. It doesn't matter where we're from. Out here in the frontier, everyone's family, to some degree. If we don't help each other, we'll either fall to the daemons or starve to death."

She glanced at Velvet. "Although I'm sure you all knew that already. From what I remember, Aball was quite the close-knit town."

Velvet looked away. "Yeah. It was."

"Is it…" Zara asked quietly, "…still there?"

Leo shook his head. "Unfortunately, not. It was wiped off the map during the Advent."

By his side, Velvet let out a soft breath.

Suddenly, the man changed his tone. "But," Leo said, a smile encroaching on his face, "You're totally right, Amy. We were all pretty close in the town." He nudged Velvet, drawing her attention back to the conversation. "You remember that time when we were ambushed by a horde of prickleboar and had to defend ourselves in the Tranquil Woods?" He asked her.

Velvet let out a scoff despite herself. "There must've been a dozen prickleboar to haul home after the fight." She smirked. "If I remember correctly, it was that fight when you accidentally tripped on your shoelaces right as a boar was charging you, and that was the only thing that saved you from getting gored in the stomach."

Leo blinked. "Huh? I think you're remembering incorrectly. I'm pretty sure I took down all those prickleboar single-handedly and saved  _you_ , the fair maiden in distress, from the fearsome beasts." He grinned cheekily.

Her eyes narrowed. "Call me that again and you'll be  _wishing_  you'd been gored back then."

Zara laughed at Leo's clear shudder of fear. "So, what happened?" She prompted.

"Well," Leo continued readily, "Velvet ran off to the village to go get help." He grinned. "Everyone was willing to help, long as they had a rather generous share of the meat."

Velvet smiled softly. "At the end of the day, there was an impromptu feast in the middle of the town square, for no other reason than to make sure everyone was rewarded for their help." She recounted.

Leo rolled his eyes. "And in the end, we didn't earn a single gald from that hunting trip." He finished.

Amy laughed. "That's amazing. It's little moments like that…" she grinned. "That makes life worth living."

Velvet's smile faded.

"So…" Zara piped up curiously. "What happened to you guys after the Advent? How did you end up all the way over here in Midgand?" She clapped her hands together excitedly. "I'm sure there's quite the story behind it!"

"Come now, Zara." Amy quickly interrupted. "These people saved us. We have no right to pry into their lives." She gave her niece a meaningful look.

The trader's daughter grimaced in shame, all the energy instantly sucked out of her at the reprimand. "Oh… I'm sorry, Leo and Velvet." She apologized profusely. "It wasn't my place to ask."

Velvet gave Amy a long look before slowly turning her gaze to Zara.

"…It's no big deal." She gave the teenager a nonchalant shrug. "I just don't feel like talking about it right now. It's a rather long story."

Leo chuckled. "You're not wrong."

The four of them walked in silence alongside the caravans as the sounds of travel took over once more. Leo let out a light whistle. In response, Hawk made his way over to the four obediently, yipping lightly. Leo gave his malak a fond pet as he idly glanced about the caravan, trying to spot the other members of his group.

He found Rokurou chatting animatedly about swords with some tough-looking traders. Eizen was giving a lecture to some traders by the caravans about the sailor's technique to tying knots. Magilou was teasing some kids incessantly towards the back of the caravan, most likely scarring them for life. Eleanor was trotting determinedly at the front of the pack, eyes sweeping the land vigilantly, ever a shield of the people. Laphicet was chatting animatedly with some teenagers twice his age with an astonishing amount of historical jargon.

Leo's mouth curved into a content smile.

The travelers continued to travel, onwards towards home.

* * *

The sun was setting as the villagers of Stonebury celebrated the return of the traders from the capital, laden with riches that would bring prosperity to their small town. Lanterns were strung from the rooves of the houses surrounding the town center, and numerous tables and benches had been set up to allow all to enjoy some Stonebury produce. A great bonfire roared happily in the center of the tables. It was an annual tradition after the selling of each harvest, but this time was especially joyous and thankful.

Talk of the heroes that had saved the band of traders had spread like wildfire, the moment the traders had arrived through the main gates. When Leo and the others had arrived in the town later in the day after having found no therion in the earthpulse point in the Aldina Plains, they had been stupefied at the raucous applause they had received from all the villagers.

The celebrations had been going on for hours now, and only now did Leo manage to wrangle himself out of the table and gasp for fresh air.

"Velvet, please." He gasped, stumbling over to the therion by the relatively quiet pond. "This is too much." He griped, waving at the raucous celebration happening over by the town square.

The solitary woman sighed in mutual exasperation.

"I know what you mean. Honestly, all we did was save a few traders from some daemons. I don't understand why they have to go through all of this just for us." She muttered.

Leo settled himself down on the grass at the edge of the pond with a huff, running a hand through his hair. "Well, I understand why at least." He glanced around the empty houses around him; all the villagers having left their homes to join in the celebrations.

"In a town like this, trade is life. Medicine, construction materials, goods like that…" He shook his head. "Just like Aball in that respect. But this village doesn't have the luxury of being so close to a major city. If the traders we ran into had been killed…" He trailed off.

"The town would have most likely have been done for." Velvet finished. She put a hand on her hip. "Even so, do they have to make such a big deal out of it?" She muttered in irritation.

Leo glared at her. "Hey, at least you've mastered the art of being seen as a brooding, vicious, and all-around unapproachable woman at first glance. You can easily make some quiches and then stay out of the party for the rest of the night. I, on the other hand," he languished, "am the lovable and much more approachable charismatic handyman whom everyone knows by now was the one who fixed Zara's music box." He moaned. "You can be just fine brooding by yourself in the darkness. People around here all seem keen on dragging me straight over to the next table and regale them of some fanciful tales that I'd learned from my travels."

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "Oh? And what tales would those be, pray tell?"

Leo shrugged. "The story of a witch that tried to trick a dragon into giving her all its gold but ended up getting eaten alive. That sort of thing."

She rolled her eyes. "Ha." She huffed dryly.

They stayed there in silence as the clamor of the celebrations they were avoiding flooded the town. Here and there could be seen now vaguely familiar faces of traders regaling some horrified villagers about their brief dance with death.

The voice of Vincent the trader in particular floated loudly above the rest.

"That's fucking right!" The man roared, evidently having had a few drinks that night. "The woman just leapt right into the middle of the group and saved my fat ass! She sliced through those fuckin' monsters like they were nothing but butter to be spread on bread!"

Murmurs spread like wildfire through those listening to Vincent's story for the first time. "You're kidding!" A spectating villager exclaimed "How could someone take on so many daemons at once?"

The man took a chug of (Stonebury-branded) wine. "Hell if I know!" He burped. "I'm just a simple trader, Bart!" He shook his head. "Anyways, that's not even the best part! The best part was-" he hiccupped, "-was the way she saved my fuckin' daughter!"

"Zara?! But I thought you said she'd run off with the rest of the traders!" The rest of the crowd was hanging on the edge of their seats.

Vincent let out a hoarse grunt. "You know the little rascal. When she and the other traders ran into that band of strangers on the road coming to save us, she just had to follow them." He shook his head. "Damn fool almost got herself killed. The daemons had split into two groups and were overwhelming that exorcist Eleanor, leaving my daughter open to attack." He clenched his meaty fists. "I was right there, just close enough to see everything clearly but just far enough to be utterly helpless to watch my daughter die."

The crowd's eyes were wide.

Vincent grinned happily. He roared, "And then that woman just charged in right outta' nowhere like a rabid beast and tore right into those bastard monsters, saving my precious Zara!" He shook his head, raising the volume of his voice even louder. "Because of that woman, my daughter lives! Because of her,  _I live_! She saved my life, and she saved my daughter's!"

He abruptly stood, shaking off a villager trying to steady him. He raised a mug high, slopping liquid onto the grass. "To the hero who saved me and my daughter's life! TO MS. VELVET!" He roared, spitting into the air.

"TO MS. VELVET!" The roar went up and was repeated all around the village as Vincent's raucous cheer echoed throughout the town. "TO MS. VELVET!"

Over by the shadowed pond, the woman stood with a hand cradling her temple. "These people…" She seethed angrily.

Leo gave her a pat. "Come on, Velvet." He grinned. "Just enjoy the feeling of being seen as the good guy by others for once."

"But… If only they knew… what I really was…" Velvet muttered quietly.

"They'd hate you."

Leo and Velvet abruptly turned in shock as Amy walked over, silent as the grave with a serious expression on her face.

"What did you say?" Velvet asked darkly.

Leo blinked. "…I suspected as much." He gestured at the trader. "So. Where's your ribbon?"

Velvet gave him a look.

Amy promptly rolled up her left sleeve, revealing the red ribbon tied around her wrist. "I apologize for not getting to talk to you earlier before you left for the mountain, but I just couldn't find the opportunity to get away from everyone." She stated, rolling her sleeve back down.

Realization dawned on Velvet's expression. "So… You're a Bloodwing. Does your brother or niece know about your extra-legal occupation?" She asked.

Amy shook her head. "I'm afraid they don't know. Like Vincent mentioned, they don't normally come with me when I go to Loegres." She waved her hand. "But that's beside the point." She met the woman's eyes. "Velvet Crowe, I'm afraid I'm just another person who knows the truth about your past."

Velvet's fists clenched. "…So, you know." She muttered. "You knew this whole time. That's why you didn't ask us any questions, and why you stopped anyone else in your group from asking any." Her gaze was hard.

"…So. You know me." She asked softly. "Do  _you_ hate me then?"

Amy sighed and looked away, looking at the celebrations happening in the light. She watched as her niece self-righteously dragged her complaining drunk brother back home; her family.

"Don't be silly." She muttered.

She faced the daemon. "The boss told me a bunch about your circumstances, Velvet. Not a lot, but enough." She looked away again. "The Abbey… What it's doing… What it's  _trying_  to do…" She shook her head. "We have the same goals."

She watched as the villagers cheered as they spectated a drinking contest between Rokurou and Eizen.

"My brother… my niece… my little trader family… The whole world." She sighed. "They all see what's on the surface, and nothing more." She met Velvet's eyes determinedly. "I, on the other hand, was always the more… shall we say… farsighted individual." She grinned wryly. "That's how I ended up as the first trader for Stonebury after all."

Leo got her point. "So, if the villagers knew our true natures, and what we've done, they would hate us." He summarized. "But you…" He took in the trader standing before him in the shadows in a new light. Or rather, a new darkness.

"You chose a different path to them. You have a different way of thinking." He stated. "The path that  _you_ feel is correct."

Amy nodded. "…That is correct."

Velvet's gaze was piercing. She said nothing.

The sounds of the party slowly wrapping up in the distance filled the silence.

"So." Velvet broke the silence. "You saw the daemon we were told of in Port Zekson?"

Right back to business, Amy nodded. "Yes. Its nest is on the mountains that you went to investigate." She explained, "I've been observing its patterns for a while now. Whenever it rains, it returns to its nest, without fail. Otherwise, it stays in flight."

Leo took a look up at the dying light of the cloudy sky. "…Well, it looks like rain might be likely soon." He glanced down at Velvet. "We should stay in town until it starts raining then."

Velvet nodded. She glanced at the trader with mixed feelings. "…Thank you, Amy." She said simply.

Amy shook her head soberly. "No. Thank  _you_  for saving my family." With distinct finality, the trader lady intoned, "…I wish you all the best on your quest. Velvet Crowe."

Leo gave her a nod in return. "Don't worry. I'll be here with her, every step of the way." He met Velvet's gaze firmly.

Amy gave one last nod. "Good luck. Both of you."

And just like that, the woman left the shadowed pool, headed back to her bright home and her happy family.

Velvet and Leo shared a glance.

The cheering in the village continued, as people reveled in the creation of a new Stonebury legend.

The Heroes of Stonebury, they would call them.

* * *

The inn was quiet. Outside, the world was dark and pitch-black, the heavy cloud cover having blocked out all celestial light.

Leo pattered through the inn in silence, treasuring the quiet. A full night of revels had completely and utterly tuckered the man out, and yet, he had still found himself unable to sleep that night. This was his way of making the most out of his insomnia, as per usual.

He trotted through the entrance to the hallway and into the lobby, the floorboards creaking underneath his boots. He gathered his bunched-up coat in his hands and slipped it on; A nighttime walk would cool him down just fine. He made for the door of the inn.

"Can't sleep?"

Leo started at the quiet question. His eyes leapt to the lobby tables, which he had assumed to be empty.

Zaveid the Whirlwind grinned back at him, sitting in the darkness alone with a glass of green liquor in his hands.

"Zaveid?!" Leo gasped.

"The one and only." The malak grinned. "I'm sorry if I get yours wrong but, in my defense, it's been so very, very long since we met…" He tapped his chin. "…Leo, right?"

The man in question blinked. "Hey, nice memory." He commented. He glanced at the mostly-full bottle of alcohol and the empty seat in front of the malak. "Do you mind? I don't have anything else to do. Can't sleep."

Zaveid waved a welcoming hand. "Hell, you don't have to ask my permission."

"Thanks anyways."

Leo slid into the seat happily, relaxing. The two sat in silence for a while, the only sounds being the creaking of the boards around them and the clinking of ice in Zaveid's cup as he sipped from it. There were no questions asked about what the other party was doing there; that would've meant breaking the silence. Both men simply needed the quiet to think.

Zaveid offered Leo a cup. The man denied it with a silent hand gesture. The malak shrugged and went back to sipping his own.

Suddenly, the malak broke the silence.

"Leo… if you don't mind me asking…"

The other man looked up in surprise.

"…Have you ever… lost someone? Someone who… you could've found again?" Zaveid asked quietly, considering his shining glass of alcohol.

Leo's expression was rigid.

The silence returned for a bit.

Zaveid was about to open his mouth in apology when Leo moved. His hand crept into his inside jacket pocket. When it returned, it held a tattered notebook. Leo met Zaveid's eyes.

"Martha." He whispered the name.

He placed the notebook on the table and opened it to a familiar page. Cascading blonde hair. Warm brown eyes. The hint of a smile playing on her lips.

Zaveid met Leo's eyes. His face softened in sympathy as he saw his own eyes reflected in the man's expression.

"Still looking, huh?" He asked quietly.

Leo nodded, staring hauntedly at the portrait. "Always." He whispered hauntedly. Abruptly, the man shut the notebook and slid it back into his pocket, tucked away.

The silence returned.

"…Theodora." Zaveid muttered suddenly.

The malak sighed, gulping down some more wine. He met Leo's eyes. "I'm still looking, too."

"It sucks, doesn't it?" Leo smiled humorlessly.

Zaveid chuckled quietly. "You're damned right it does."

The silence returned. The two sat there alone, each mourning the things they had lost. Quietly, outside, the first drops of rain began to patter on the window panes, breaking the tranquility.

* * *

BOOM!

Thunder pounded the rocky crags of the Aldina Plains in the distance, far below the peak of the mountain upon which a fierce battle occurred. The next flash of lighting briefly cut into the black of night with a violent explosion of illumination, momentarily revealing the massive form of a dragon, and the villains battling it. Rain showered upon the utterly drenched fighters, each one uncaring of the discomfort in favor of fighting for their lives.

Flashes of colored light lit up the peak in addition to the flashes of lighting, evidence of the vast amounts of mana being channeled into artes to be cast against the monstrous daemon. The enraged roaring of an untamed beast cut through the air with a strength rivalling the roaring of thunder as it fought back.

"This sucks!" Leo roared angrily as he rolled in the sodden grass, uncaring of the residue stains on his coat as the dragon's tail swept millimeters overhead, the wind pressure popping his ears. He cursed again and dug his heels into the mud, sprinting away from the massive beast.

"Don't let it get near you!" Eizen ordered harshly, leaping in and warding the dragon off from the retreating Leo with precise artes casted at the daemon's head.

As the dragon roared in anger and flinched from the artes, Leo replied sarcastically, "Oh yeah, I  _totally_ meant to go hug the vicious killer dragon. Thanks  _so much_ for the wonderful advice, Eizen!" He cocked his sodden rifle, ejecting another shell into the rain and filling the chamber with more piercing rounds as he ran.

"While we're on the subject," Magilou yelled at a distance, "can someone explain to me why exactly we're fighting this thing again? It's not even a therion!" She complained as she finished incanting an arte, lighting up the area with a magnificent flame arte that scalded the dragon's scales.

"We have no choice!" Eleanor yelled, slashing at the dragon's hind legs. "We must take it down, or at least drive it away for our own survival!" She grunted as she leapt back hurriedly, avoiding a powerful kick of the leg she was attacking.

Leo scrunched the wet stock of his rifle against his cheek. "I blame this on you Eizen!" He roared. "Why the hell did you want to kill this daemon so much?!" He slid his wrinkled finger inside the trigger guard and contacted the cold metal of the trigger.

CRACK-CAK!

The piercing round struck the dragon right in the neck, eliciting a roar of agony. With a burst of energy, the dragon swiped its tail around in a full circle, forcing all the fighters in the vicinity to retreat. Eizen grunted as he landed, promptly casting a shield in response to an incoming claw attack on his person. "My reasons are my own!" He pushed the claw off his shield with a massive push, throwing the dragon off-balance.

Velvet rushed past him, daemon arm extended, bashing the dragon away with a fierce roar. "But this battle isn't!" She yelled harshly, sending a glare to the malak. "You had no right to involve us!" Another flash of lightning illuminated the battlefield.

"None of this matters now!" Rokurou interjected as he leapt inhumanly high in the air and sliced two clean cuts down the flank of the staggered dragon. "Just keep fighting!"

"Tch!" Velvet's irritation was palatable. "Phi!" She yelled, glancing over at the malak. "Do it!"

"Okay!" Laphicet nodded and initiated an arte. The night hummed with energy. His eyes glowed hauntingly in the dark.

"You've wronged me!" He yelled. With a wave of his hand, a flock of paper strips swarmed around the dragon. "Here's your justice!" The mana in the air increased tenfold. The hair on the back of Leo's neck stood up in alarm.

"Binding Order!"

BOOM!

With a crash, the space around the dragon dented and condensed, forcing intense pressure onto the daemon's skin and causing it to howl in protest. It flung its body left and right, fighting the pain.

"Nice one, Phi!" Leo complemented, lining up a shot on the thrashing daemon.

CRACK-CAK!

Leo blinked as the bullet went sharply off-course to the left, curving away from the weakened dragon.

"ZAVEID!" Eizen's surprised yell rang out throughout the night.

Leo glanced over at the malak in surprise, squinting in the dark through the rain.

"Yow… I… see you're out for blood as usual…" Leo registered the voice of a battered Zaveid as he picked himself up from Eizen's blow. "You knew… didn't you, Eizen?"

"…Out of my way." The reaper's voice was hard and determined.

The thunder roared in the distance. The rain began to falter.

Leo glanced anxiously at the dragon before returning his gaze to the two malakhim. "What the hell?!" He yelled as he noticed the extended pendulums in Zaveid's hands. "Zaveid?! Are you protecting a dragon?!"

Zaveid's glare was cold. "She's not a dragon." He stated firmly.

_She?!_

Leo's blood ran cold.

"You… don't mean…" Leo trailed off in horror.

Phi's voice was shrill, "Zaveid! Watch out!"

Zaveid blinked and suddenly dove forward.

SLAM!

Everyone cursed and backed off from the dust cloud that had been sent up by the dragon's tail when it slammed onto the dirt Zaveid had been standing on moments before.

Leo cursed and hefted his rifle at the dragon, only to lower it as he realized it was too far away to shoot, having flown away after its strike. "Damn." He muttered, noticing that the rain had stopped, leaving only a cool, moist summer night in its wake.

The dragon wouldn't be coming back.

A groan brought his attention down to his feet. "Ouch… That hurts babe…" Zaveid muttered lowly as he sat up, having narrowly escaped being smashed to death by the dragon. "And here we haven't seen each other in so long…"

The dust hung chokingly in the air.

"Is everyone alright?!" Eleanor's shout rang out through the night.

"I'm all wrong," Magilou's voice responded farther away, "but that's pretty normal."

Leo offered the malak a hand. "Zaveid…" He muttered softly as the rest of his group reunited in the background. He knew why the malak had protected that dragon.

Zaveid gave the man a humorless smile and took his hand, pulling himself upwards with a grunt. "Yeah." He intoned softly, meeting Leo's eyes. "Like I said. Still looking."

Leo looked away.

"…A malak with daemonblight…" He muttered softly. "Is there… any way to get her back?"

Zaveid looked at him with a hard gaze. "You're acting as if she left in the first place." He stated coldly. He shook his head. "No… My wife has always been here. With me." He pushed a fist onto his chest. "That hasn't changed. And it won't."

Leo's breath hitched.

_His… wife._

Cascading blonde hair. Warm brown eyes. The hint of a smile playing on her lips.

He let out a shaky breath. "...My own… wife." He breathed.

"In my case… I was the one who left her." His fists curled in self-hatred. "I was a fool." He sighed, looking away. "…And now it's me who's trying to get myself back. Not the other way around, like you."

He met Zaveid's eyes again. "I hope you find a way to bring your Theodora back. I wish you all the luck in the world."  _And all the others, as well_.

Zaveid held Leo's gaze. "…And I hope you find your way back to your Martha as well." He gave a humorless smirk. "Huh. I guess we're both just a couple of lovestruck fools in the end."

Leo sighed. "…Yeah."

The two stood there quietly.

"Zaveid!" Eizen's yell broke the silence as he stormed up to the man, the rest of the group hot on his heels.

As the two began to bicker incessantly, Leo drifted away from them all, towards the edge of the mountain peak, looking onwards as the sun began to rise over the distant plains. A fresh and crisp summer wind laden with the scent of the rain wafted over his face as he took in the glory of the sun, rising over a vast, unfamiliar land.

He took a glance over his shoulder at the group he'd fallen in with. The group of people he'd come to almost see as a sort of pseudo-family.

He sighed, turning around to face the empty plains. An entire world devoid of life.

He was still alone, it would seem.

The wind continued to howl.


	34. C32 - Snowfall

**Chapter 32 – Snowfall.**

The air was cold with a northern bite to it as the Van Eltia sailed the frigid seas towards Hellawes. Up on the upper deck of the Van Eltia, Leo hugged his coat closer to himself, shivering as he gazed silently off into the open ocean.

"Is the cold that bad?"

The man turned to find the malak Laphicet wandering over with a curious gaze. Hawk trotted at the boy's heels and greeted Leo with a yip. He grunted as his wolf hopped lithely onto the railing he was leaning on, giving the malak a ruffle.

"Hey Phi." He greeted absently over his shoulder. "The cold's not too bad, actually. I've been through worse." He grinned warmly down at the malak. "It's all about what you've experienced before and what you haven't, of course. That's life for you." He waved a hand.

Laphicet hummed. "That makes sense." He followed Leo's gaze towards the horizon.

"Ever since Velvet freed my bonds, I've been feeling these things more and more. The cold and the heat. Pain and joy." He had a soft smile on his face. "It feels nice. Choosing what to do."

Leo nodded genially. "Of course."

He patted the boy's back. "I'm proud of how far you've come, Phi. Honestly, you could end up teaching me a thing or two about living at this rate."

Laphicet shook his head. "No, being aware just lets me know just how much I  _don't_ know." His eyes were bright. "You, Rokurou, Eizen, Eleanor, and Velvet are teaching me so much everyday. All of you are so kind to me... It's nice."

The man barked a laugh. "So... not Magilou." He pointed out.

"Uh..." Laphicet fumbled with his clothes. He chuckled shyly. "Yeah not really."

Leo grinned in response.

Suddenly, he sighed, slumping forwards on the railing.

"...Do you remember how cold it was in Hellawes?" He asked the malak quietly.

Laphicet tilted his head. "Not really. I still had my emotions sealed away back then. Was it colder than it is now?" He indicated the frosty air around them on the ship.

The man reached inside his jacket pocket absent-mindedly and played with a bullet in his gloved hands. "...Yeah." He breathed. "It was real cold." His jaw was rigid. "But the townsfolk were all warm back then, so it didn't matter."

His eyes were hard.

"But now, they're as cold as can be. Every man, woman, and child in the city. Freezing."

Laphicet held a hand up to his chest. He concluded softly, "Because Velvet destroyed all of the flamestone..."

Leo stared idly up at the flapping canvas up above him.

"I was there, you know. The day after Velvet had razed the town." He sighed. "The people she had killed... and the destruction she had caused. The suffering she had doomed the town to." His eyes fell back on the horizon, towards the reality the ship was fast approaching.

"I thought she was a monster, back then. I vowed to kill her... to bring an end to the suffering she caused." He recounted.

Laphicet's eyes were sad.

"Then... how do you feel now?" He asked softly.

Leo held the rifle round up in the cold sunlight.

"She is a monster." He muttered quietly, almost to himself. "I know she is."

He turned the tip of the bullet outwards. "But I know of a man who's more of a monster than her. That's just how it is. That's why I'm still with you guys."

The man's fist clenched over the bullet.

"...But that doesn't mean I won't feel bad about the things she's done."

Laphicet had no response for that.

"…That's life for you, I guess." Leo muttered sourly.

A piercing gust of freezing wind blew across the ship, rustling the canvas above.

"But..." the malak spoke up abruptly, "Velvet's different now, isn't she?"

The man turned to face the malak in surprise.

Laphicet continued passionately, "A lot of people don't see it, but... Velvet's actually changed a lot since Hellawes!" He explained, "Her eyes have gotten softer, and her smiles have been more frequent." He shook his head. "When I was bound by Teresa, the Velvet I saw had a much harder face. She was much scarier back then than she is now!"

He looked down abruptly, the energy leaving him. "I... I want to say that Velvet's gotten less extreme but..." He trailed off uncertainly.

"She hasn't." Leo finished softly.

He shook his head sadly. "I see those changes in her too, Laphicet." A small smile formed on his face. "There are times when I can see the old Velvet buried underneath all of that hate. Those moments when she's with me or you. When she cooks for the group. When she's ordering us to wash our hands before eating. Hell, even when we saved Vincent and Zara..."

He shook his head, his smile vanishing in an instance. "Yet her need for revenge is insatiable. She's a daemon with a single goal, and that's that." He sighed. "She will do anything to achieve her goal."

The chime of an attention bell rang throughout the deck.

Leo's eyes were hard as he took in the sight of Northgand appearing over the horizon.

He slipped the bullet back into its pocket.

"She'd raze Hellawes over all over again if she had to. Regardless of how human she's become." He stated firmly. "That's just the sort of daemon she is."

It was true, and they both knew it.

The two stood in silent contemplation as the crew began to rush around, preparing to dock the ship in the harbor the daemon Velvet Crowe had ravaged.

A cold wind howled.

* * *

The packed snow crunched under the feet of the group as they trudged through the quiet street.

Brick buildings enclosed the street on both sides, staring out hauntingly at the travelers with barred windows. Ravens cawed as they circled overhead, fighting for scraps of trash. The wind howled eerily through the unoccupied buildings. In the distance, a dog barked unceasingly.

"Sheesh." Magilou muttered, glancing around. "You'd find more cheer in a graveyard." She glanced behind her shoulder with a sly grin. "I guess our quaint little raid had some rather far-reaching consequences."

Velvet's expression was cold. She waved a careless hand. "Looks like it."

Laphicet nervously eyed a kicked-in door hanging noisily from its hinges as they passed by it. "Yeah… this street has totally changed from what I remember…"

"And what makes you say that, I wonder?" Magilou asked lightly, gesturing grandly to the desolate street. "The whole abandoned-town vibe, perhaps?"

Eleanor glared at her. "This is no laughing matter!" She exhaled, glancing around with distraught eyes.

"These people…!" She breathed lowly. "This used to be one of the busiest streets in all of Hellawes…"

"And now it's been abandoned." Rokurou pointed out simply.

A clump of parchment blew in the wind across the street and found its way into an open window, crashing into the furniture inside with a startlingly loud clamor.

Eizen grunted. "The lack of prospects in town due to the destruction of the flamestone and the port must've convinced a good portion of the population to simply abandon ship and find more promising places to live."

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "But the port and warehouses have been rebuilt, albeit to a lesser degree." She pointed out. "I would've expected the town to get back on its feet at this point."

The reaper shook his head. "You would think that, but according to Benwick, the trade routes Hellawes had with other cities were poached during the time it took to rebuild the port." He explained, hooking his thumbs into his belt as he walked. "And now there's absolutely no reason to give the trade routes back to Hellawes. That's on top of the major flamestone shortages due to the destroyed warehouses."

He shrugged. "In short, the town of Hellawes will most likely never again reach the levels of prosperity it had enjoyed for the past few years."

Eleanor's jaw was tight as she listened. "…How horrible." She muttered.

Velvet gave her a look. "This is just the cost of war against the Abbey." She stated simply. "It's just what needs to be done."

Leo was silent.

The man trailed quietly behind the group, listening passively to their conversation. His eyes roamed the desolate houses, his lips pressed in a firm line. Hawk trotted alongside him, his ears perked and his nose constantly sniffing, on guard in such a deserted area. He gave his master a soft whine.

Leo responded with a brief smile that quickly faded.

The group continued to walk in the dead quiet.

Suddenly, Hawk's ears flicked.

The loud squeak of a door opening pierced the quiet. Everyone's eyes were automatically drawn to the entrance of a surprisingly well-kept house, considering its neighbors.

"Damn! I'm late!"

A harried-looking man hurried out and locked the door quickly, a ring of keys clanking loudly in his hands as he did so. Once the plump man had confirmed the door had locked with a firm tug, he turned around and went face-to-face with a group of very unsavory-looking people staring at him directly on his doorstep.

"GAAAH!" He squealed, leaping back and hitting his door with his tailbone.

His eyes were wide. "Innominat!" He swore, trying desperately to open the door before he realized he'd already locked it. "Damn! …Alright! Fine!" He slumped in defeat. He rustled inside his heavy coat in anger. "Here! Take it you damn bastards!" He held out a pouch of gald to the group.

Everyone blinked. Hawk cocked his head.

Velvet cleared her throat. "Is there a… reason why you're giving us money?"

The man blinked, evidently flabbergasted.

"Huh. I don't think he can talk, Velvet." Magilou observed wryly. "It's probably best that we just take his money and go."

Eleanor glared at her disapprovingly. "Don't even joke about that! The man's scared out of his wits as it is."

She turned to the stranger and gave a formal curtsy. "Greetings, sir. I'm Eleanor Hume, of the Abbey. These are my companions." She gestured to the wide assortment of personalities standing next to her.

The man blinked. "Oh!" He gasped. "An exorcist! Oh, thank Innominat!"

The tension instantly drained out of the man's body as he sagged against his door. He wiped the sweat off his forehead. "You have no idea how many times I've been robbed by rascals like your companions this past month."

Velvet's eye narrowed dangerously. "If that's the case, I'd be careful of what you say around such  _rascals_." She crossed her arms, pointedly showing off her gauntlet.

The plump man let a mild squeak in response, waving two disarming hands in front of him hurriedly. "A-Ah! Excuse me, m-ma'am! I misspoke-"

CLANK.

He swore under his breath as the key ring in his hand slipped right out of his slick hands and clanked onto the doorstep.

Laphicet trotted up peacefully and picked the ring up, offering it to the gentleman. "Here you go, sir." He gave the man an apologetic smile. "I'm really sorry that we startled you!"

The man stared at the child for a few seconds before blinking and gratefully accepting the keys from the him. He shook his head warmly, "It's quite alright, son." He gave the kid a friendly pat on the shoulder.

"I guess that's Laphicet for you." Rokurou commented softly with a chuckle. "Always the charmer."

Leo shared a smirk with the daemon before trotting forward to Eleanor's side. "Hello, I'm Leonex Davidson, Eleanor's trainee." He dipped his head. "I'm also sorry for any trouble we've caused. We've only just arrived in town, you see."

The gentleman's gaze fell on Leo. His eyes grew hard. "Oh? That so?"

He glanced between Leo and Eleanor. "Then would I be correct in assuming that the lot of you will be heading up to the Faldies Ruins up north?"

Eleanor blinked. "Why would you think that?"

The man scoffed. "That's what you people do nowadays, isn't it? Ignoring the plight of the townsfolk and running off to far-off places for Innominat knows what." He spat into the snow in clear disdain. "Here we are, up to our necks in rampant crime, crumbling infrastructure, and a degrading economy, and you 'protectors of the people' are off scrounging in ruins! It's disgraceful, I say! An absolute  _disgrace_!" He declared heatedly.

Magilou blinked. "Wow. He sure changed his tone."

Velvet nodded absently, a thoughtful finger on her lips as she ruminated over the presented information.

Leo gave the man a hard look. "Easy there, bucko." He said harshly. "Me and my master are patrolling exorcists. We're not part of normal operations in the greater Hellawes area; on the contrary, we're here to  _inspect_  normal operations. If you have a problem with how the Abbey is doing things, you'd better be kissing up to us, not insulting us."

"And on that note," Eizen splayed his hands, "we're in a secluded alleyway with no other witnesses. Insulting others in such a situation is generally speaking an inadvisable course of action."

The man was instantly cowed. "O-oh. I-is that so?" He shook himself vigorously. "Well, I what you say is the case…"

"…I'm terribly,  _terribly_  sorry!" He bowed as far as his large stomach would allow. "Please! Forgive my thoughtless words!" He pleaded.

"Must be nice living without a spine." Rokurou commented as an aside to Magilou.

Eleanor gave him a glare in reprimand before walking forward towards the sniveling man.

"Don't be sorry." She stated firmly. "Your complaints are valid, I'm sure." She shook her head sadly. "It's natural to become angry at an entire institution when one has been mistreated so. Your suffering is not something to simply take lightly." She straightened her back in a determined promise. "I'll get to the bottom of this. All of us will. That's a promise."

"O-oh, thank you, madam exorcist!" The man bowed again. "You have no idea how relieved I am to see someone  _finally_ doing something about this horrid situation!"

Velvet spoke up, "Are things that bad in the city?"

The man met Velvet's eyes and sighed dejectedly. "Yes." He stated firmly. "Ever since the raid, things have gone from bad to worse."

He glanced around at the empty houses around his own. "Almost everyone I know have left the continent in search of better work. The lack of flamestone ever since the raid has meant people have had to resort to returning to fishing as a primary industry, resulting in a good portion of the economy instantly losing its foundation. It simply cannot support the previously held standard of living."

The man cursed. "All because of that daemon…"

Leo shook his head wordlessly.  _It's worse than I thought…_

He glanced at the daemon in question. Her eyes were hard but determined. As expected.

"So," Eizen summarized, "the town's gone completely under."

The man nodded dejectedly. "Because of that, more and more people have been turning to crime. The streets are no longer safe." He groaned. "Not to mention the daemonblight returning to the city! Even poor Medissa…" He trailed off.

"Medissa?" Velvet prompted.

The man shook his head. "No, that's unimportant. The point is, it's bad."

"If that's so," Laphicet piped up, "then why are you staying here?" He glanced at the isolated well-cared for house in the middle of the other abandoned buildings.

The gentleman held out some papers with a familiar emblem emblazoned on the front.

"I'm a banker." He stated. "I run an independent branch of the Midgand Royal Funds Distribution." He sighed. "I try to help out folks where I can with whatever loans I can give, with as lax terms as possible. It's all I can do to help in these times of crisis."

Leo blinked. "…It's all for other people? That's hardly a good way to maintain a profit." He pointed out. "What about yourself?"

The banker shook his head. "I… don't really have anyone else in my life." He glanced at him and Eleanor. He admitted, "I know the Abbey teaches the principle that everyone should follow the rules of reason… And in this case, reason would dictate that I abandon town like everyone else so that my services could be used to grow towns with more… potential. That's what my friends all told me to do, anyways, before they left as well."

He sighed. "…But… it just feels… right doing this, you know? Helping the poor people I see in the streets... It just feels right. That's all." He slumped against the door defeatedly.

"An altruistic banker." Magilou commented. "How oxymoronic can you get?"

"Quite." Eizen agreed.

Rokurou nodded, impressed. "…I take it back. Turns out he's got more backbone than all the people who fled Hellawes."

Laphicet smiled. "Yeah! You're so brave, mister!"

The man suddenly grew red as a tomato. "W-what?! I'm r-really not..." He scratched the back of his neck, blushing. "Honest. I'm just a cowardly moneyman. Nothing more."

Velvet let out a reluctant huff of approval. "Who stayed behind when all else left. That doesn't sound so cowardly to me." She eyed the man with respect. "…Good luck."

The banker gaped at the hardened woman praising him. "I…uh… T-thank you! A-and good luck with your patrols!" He gave a bow to all of them.

Rokurou blinked, evidently remembering something. "Hey. When you came outside, weren't you saying something about being late for something?"

The banker stood there, staring at the man for a second. He abruptly let out a slight scream. "AHHH! I'M LATE!"

He suddenly began bolting as fast as his pudgy feet could take him down the road. "T-Thank you all! Farewell!" He yelled over his shoulder, speeding off into the distance.

Eleanor called after him, "Farewell! Good luck!"

"Honestly." Magilou shook her head helplessly. "And people say  _I'm_ eccentric."

Rokurou deadpanned. "You  _are_  eccentric."

Meanwhile, Leo stared at the corner where the banker had disappeared behind, lost in thought.

_What feels right…_

His eyes were drawn to Velvet's.

* * *

Leo sipped his glass of water; his ears open to the clamor of the tavern.

All around him were folks in varying levels of inebriation, acting as if the louder they talked the more their worries would disappear. The rifleman sat there quietly at the bar, easily listening in on the loud conversations around him.

"Oh! How I long for Teresa to return to the city! How dare the Abbey sully her name by demoting her for such a simple mistake?!"

"A simple mistake?! That simple mistake is what got our city into this mess in the first place!"

"Shut it! How dare you insult her! Don't you remember when the great Teresa was in charge?! The terrors that plague our streets would  _never_ have been condoned under her great rule!"

"…I guess you've got a point."

"Of course, I do!" A moan. "Oh, but how I  _long_ to see those cold, piercing eyes just once more! Teresa my love! Punish me!"

"...Why the hell do I drink with you again?"

Leo shook his head in exasperation. Nothing useful. Again.

The group had split up to try and find out more about the exorcist activities in the Faldies Ruins, as well as the story of Medissa and her child, and any other useful information. For some reason, he seriously doubted they would want to know about the several different shades of ice present in Teresa Linares's eyes.

His ears perked as he caught wind of another conversation happening between two sailors in a table by the corner.

"…Damn this all." A rough voice grouched.

"We're already all damned." Was the hoarse, slightly slurred response.

A hawking spit. "You're fuckin' right. And all 'cause of that fuckin' monster."

A rough sigh. "To think… all of this misery could be caused by one damn daemon."

"…The  _Calamity_ , you mean."

Another spit.

"Such a fitting name." A pause as the man stopped to chug his alcoholic drink. "Because of the damned Calamity, my kids had to leave me and go live with that bitch ex-wife of mine. All because of the destroyed flamestone."

"You've told me this a million times already." A huff. "Besides, it's not your ex-wife you should be calling a bitch. It's the Calamity who's the bitch."

A humorless laugh. "Yeah. The Bitch Calamity." Another long draught of alcohol. "A horrible creature of pure evil…"

"An arm that devours everything it touches... That daemon ruined  _everything_!" An angry slam on the wooden table. "Damn her! Damn her to hell!"

"That arm did more than devour the exorcists in her path. Don't forget the fires she caused, which killed dozens. Or the utter ruin she brought to our fair city."

A violent scrape of wood on wood as a stool was suddenly thrust aside as a man shot to his feet.

"HOW THE HELL COULD I FORGET THAT?!" The man roared angrily.

The entire bar stopped talking and looked at the man in alarm. Leo turned his head to find a large, burly sailor angrily facing down a seated fellow sailor. The man evidently couldn't've cared less about the attention he was drawing.

He continued, spittle flying from his mouth, "THAT CALAMITY IS THE REASON WHY MY LIL' DAUGHTER AIN'T HERE ANYMORE!" He roared. "BECAUSE OF HER… I couldn't… Because…"

All the energy abruptly fled from the man as he slumped weakly into a nearby chair, cradling his head morosely. "Because of her…" He whispered in the quiet of the tavern, "I couldn't pay for… the…  _medicine_ …"

The last word was a mere whimper.

His companion had a sad, knowing look in his face as he stood from his chair and patted his friend sympathetically.

"I know." The other sailor intoned softly. "Come on. You've had more than enough, I'd reckon." He hefted the willing man up by the shoulder. "Let's go. You'll feel better in the mornin'."

"…Yeah… You're right." His drunk friend mumbled.

As the two friends stumbled together out of the tavern, Leo turned back to his cup, his face hard and his jaw set.

_Calamity, huh?_

He supposed it fit.

All of a sudden, the inside of the warm tavern was much, much too stuffy for him. He needed to leave,  _now_.

The man swept out of the tavern as quickly as he could.

Outside, he welcomed the harsh bite of the cold on his cheeks. He bundled his coat around him and made for the main square.

It was a bit early to meet up with the rest of the group just yet, but he supposed he could just wait there for a bit. Anything beat being in that nest of hatred and despair.

He trotted forward briskly through the snowfall, winding through alleyways and main thoroughfares in a memorized path towards the main square. He still remembered how to get there; it had only been a few months before that he had witnessed the effect of Velvet's actions for himself.

His jaw tightened as he remembered that day. He could still taste the phantom smell of flamestone from that memory.

This was the sort of thing he was supporting. The suffering and deaths of innocents.

He was supporting Calamity.

A he walked through a deserted alleyway, Hawk took the chance to appear in a flash of green on a barrel and hop after his master, whining worriedly. Leo just shook his head wordlessly and indicated for the wolf to return.

He needed to cool his head down, alone.

Half an hour of brisk trotting later, Leo stepped out of an alleyway into the main square of Hellawes. He scanned the wide pavement, absently noting the dents in the plowed pavement. None of his party members had arrived; as was expected.

His eyes abruptly landed on the sanctuary dedicated to Innominat.

The last time he had seen the building, the moans of the sick and dying had echoed through the square. Now, the building was different.

Instead of being a center of activity of doctors and nurses hurriedly running here and there to try and save lives, it was a quiet place, visited only by a few believers at a time. Instead of having windows open to air out the odor of the sick, the windows were shut to avoid snow flying onto the cleaned wood flooring.

And instead of having a clean patch of snowy grass in front of the building, there was a large graveyard and a monument, dedicated to those whose lives had been taken by The Calamity.

On his own accord, Leo's feet brought him to the open gate of the graveyard, a haunted look on his face.

He stepped inside.

There were dozens of graves surrounding the monument in the middle. Leo read the information for each name as he passed by.

45 years old. 27 years old. 68 years old. 20 years old. 12 years old.

The details just stuck in Leo's thoughts, and refused to leave. The names just kept on coming. Each of these was a person whose life was cut short by his friend's actions, one way or another.

Clawed to death by Calamity. Burned alive by flamestone detonation. Suffocation due to smoke inhalation. Clawed to death by Calamity. Trapped and crushed under a collapsed burning building.

Leo kept walking, his eyes reading non-stop.

He stopped in front of the monument in the middle of the graveyard, a solid dark obelisk of solidarity for the victims of Calamity. Engraved at the foot of the carving was an inscription. Leo stepped closer to read it.

"Remember these souls, a monument to the horrors of the world we live in."

Leo whirled around in surprise and saw a boy standing on the other side of the graveyard, looking straight at him.

"Remember these souls," the boy continued reciting, "a monument to the cruelty of the monsters who share it with us." His eyes were cold. "Remember these souls, a monument to the need for order, and reason."

The snow fell quietly as he finished, "Forever."

Leo sucked in a breath as he connected the face to the memory. A name surfaced in his head.

"…Jason." He muttered quietly. "The boy from the raid."

He had changed. The boy he had remembered, whom had run up to him and Eleanor begging for them to save his father who he didn't know was already dead, was not this boy. This boy was hardened and jaded. Wordlessly, Jason beckoned Leo over.

Leo slowly made his way over to him, weaving through the graves. He came to a stop next to the boy, who wasn't looking at him. Instead, his gaze was fixed on the gravestone lovingly cared for with fresh flowers laid in front.

Adam Reef.

38 years old.

Clawed to death by Calamity.

He is remembered by his son, Jason Reef.

Remember his soul.

The silence was quiet as the two stood there in front of the gravestone. The grave of Jason's father.

"…I've got nobody left." Jason muttered quietly. "My friends, my aunt; everyone's left town. It's just me, alone, in that empty house that my father bought. Everyday. It's so… quiet."

Leo knew he should say something… anything. But he couldn't.

Jason turned a cold gaze onto the man. "…You lied to me." He stated harshly. "You and that praetor."

Leo blinked.

"You said that you'd do everything you could to make him comfortable." Jason recited perfectly. "…But you lied." His gaze fell back on the gravestone.

Leo grasped for words, "…Jason… He… Your father was already-"

"I KNOW THAT!"

The boy abruptly erupted, whirling to the exorcist in anger. "I KNOW! HE WAS  _DEAD_!" He caught his breath. "But you still lied! Because I  _knew_ my dad. And I know the only,  _only_ way he could be comfortable dying in such a horrible,  _terrible_ way, would be if the daemon who killed him was also killed!"

His whole body trembled in emotion. "But… but you exorcists… you all have been so  _USELESS_!" He roared. "All of you are no better than the monster who killed my dad!" He abruptly charged forwards, slamming his fists over and over into Leo's chest. "You bastard!" He cried, punching the man.

Leo grunted, stepping back and away from the assault. "Jason… I…"

"SHUT UP!" The assault grew more violent.

Leo had no words to say, really. Because in truth, he completely understood Jason's viewpoint. The boy had nothing left. Everything he had had before had been taken away by a selfish monster. All that the boy had left was hatred for that monster. The Calamity.

Velvet Crowe.

Leo's friend.

"STOP IT!"

Both Leo and Jason turned sharply in surprise to find a little girl nervously but determinedly storming forwards, glaring at the boy. "Stop bullying Sir Exorcist!" She yelled.

Jason glared at the intruder angrily. "And why should I?! He's the one who's useless!" He roared.

The girl shook her head determinedly, fists clenched. "He's NOT useless!" She met Leo's gaze with bright eyes.

"…He saved my life!" She yelled.

Just like that, the memory came back to Leo. The girl in front of Beardsley, whom he had saved. The orphan.

Jason grasped for words. "…So?!" He yelled. "He and all the other exorcists in the world couldn't take down the Calamity! Because of that, what happened to my father is going to happen to more people!" He thrust out a hand angrily. "Why the hell shouldn't I be angry about that?!"

"I… I don't care about that!"

Jason's expression was livid. "What?!"

The girl reaffirmed herself and met Jason's eyes determinedly. "All I care about is the fact that he saved my life! Because of that, I can still live, and because of that, my mother can be proud of me, even though she's gone!"

She puffed out her chest toughly. "I need to live, and grow old and wise, just to prove those mean exorcists wrong! Just like you told me, right mister exorcist?" She glanced up at Leo determinedly.

Leo froze, staring back at the little girl's wide, determined eyes.

Ever so slowly, he felt an unspeakable warmth kindle in his barren heart. A heart that had been tugged two ways for far too long.

That's right.

He was the "good guy."

"…Yeah." He whispered softy, a light grin encroaching on his face.

Not a single gust of wind encroached on the silence of the graveyard.

"How… How could you!?" Jason roared furiously, physically trembling with pent-up anger.

"You're being an idiot."

Jason whirled around at the new voice, at his limit with people dismissing his anger. "And how the hell so?!" He roared.

Leo looked over in surprise as Velvet strolled into the graveyard of the people she had killed, the chains on her clothing clinking quietly in the wind. Her eyes were fixed on the boy.

She answered coldly, "Because Leo didn't kill your father. Because none of the exorcists killed your father. The one who did is the one whose name is on everyone's lips all around town."

She looked down her nose at the child in disdain. "You're an idiot for hating a good guy."

Jason groped for words but came up short against the logic. "I… I…" He shook his head. "Argh! You just don't get it! None of you do!" He yelled stubbornly, before turning tail and running away, out of the graveyard. "Damnit!"

Leo watched as the kid ran off, a sad look in his eyes.

"And you, girl."

The kid from Beardsley glanced up fearfully at the intimidating woman.

Velvet put a hand on her hip and shifted her weight. "You're right, you know?"

"I… am?" The girl asked shyly.

Velvet nodded. She glanced at the man standing across from her. "Leo here is a good person, with good intentions at heart." She described honestly. "Someone who does the things he thinks are right, and only the things he thinks are right."

She met Leo's gaze coldly. "…Someone who insufferably always feels the need to feel bad about things he has  _no right to feel bad about_." She scoffed softly at the very notion.

Leo's eyes narrowed sharply.

The therion returned her gaze to the child. "…You're from Beardsley, right? Your village caravan is about to head out, last I saw. I think you should hurry on home."

The girl suddenly leapt in fright. "Oh no!" She glanced at Leo, "I-I'm sorry I can't stay mister exorcist! I really have to go!" She apologized.

Leo gave her a warm pat on the head. "…Keep living." He urged softly.

"I will!" The girl bobbed her head determinedly. She turned towards the gate of the graveyard. She looked over her shoulder as she began to run out. "Say hello to Hawk for me! Goodbye!"

Leo waved in response. "I will!" He promised. "Goodbye!"

As the girl disappeared from view, the silence returned, shrouding the only two living beings in the quiet snowy graveyard.

It was the Calamity who broke the quiet.

"You don't have any right to feel bad about this." Velvet muttered.

Leo's gaze snapped to her own.

She waved a careless hand over the dozens of graves surrounding them, encompassing the grave of Adam Reef. "None of these deaths were because of you. None of the hatred of the town is towards you. You had nothing to do with any of this, at all."

She turned away from him harshly.

"These sins are mine to bear." She stated firmly into the wind.

"I'm the one who killed these people. And I accept that fact. You should too."

She began to walk away.

"You think I'm just going to go ahead and let you take all the weight?" Leo seethed lowly, his fists curling in frustration.

Velvet stopped. She sighed in exasperation.

"…Remember these souls, a monument to the cruelty of the monsters who share the world with us." She quoted.

She turned around and showed him her bandaged arm pointedly, gesturing to the graves around them.

"I did this. I am The Calamity."

Her eyes were as cold as the snow around them. "I will do what needs to be done. That is all that needs to be said. Only me. Not you." She clenched her bandaged fist.

"Just blame it all on The Calamity. It'll be much easier that way."

With that declaration, the silence returned.

The two stood there, staring each other down. Velvet's dark cloak fluttered quietly in the wind. The tinkling of a wind chime hanging from a distant grave echoed through the yard.

"No."

Leonex Davidson lifted his gaze to meet Velvet's firmly.

"Fuck off." He spat as he shouldered his gun grimly, gazing around at the graves. "You're not in this alone, Velvet. And that's that."

He advanced determinedly towards the woman. "Calamity isn't a single person. It's a group of people." He stopped and clamped a hard hand on Velvet's shoulder, meeting her eyes. "At the very least, it's you and me." His eyes narrowed. "You're not allowed to take responsibility for everything. That's just what friends are for."

Velvet was genuinely lost for words for a second.

She put a hand up to her temple.

"…And yet you still consider yourself a 'good guy?'" She asked in disbelief.

"I suppose." Leo shrugged helplessly. "It's like the banker said. Doing what feels right." He patted her shoulder. "And right now, what feels right is being there for a friend. That's all there is to it."

He smiled slightly.

"Well, come on then, fellow Calamity." He urged, beckoning her impatiently. "We've got a Shepherd to kill."

Velvet sighed, a small smile rising unbidden on her face.

"…You're an idiot. You really are." She muttered, shaking her head in exasperation.

Leo waved her off wryly.

"We've established this already." He grinned cheekily.

Velvet let out a wordless scoff.

With that, the therion turned on her heel and walked off. Leo promptly followed in her footsteps. The two of them left the graveyard of the people Velvet had killed together, continuing on their path of destruction towards the death of one man.

Leo would follow her. And he would share in her sins.

Because it was what felt right to him.

That night, the wind blew with an abnormally bitter chill that would make the citizens of Hellawes shudder.

**End of Part 5 – The Therions.**


	35. C33 - Methods

**Chapter 33 – Methods.**

"You're lost." Velvet accused flatly.

"For the last time," Leo growled back, "I  _am not_  lost!" He glared at the woman before turning his gaze back onto the featureless, ever-expansive interior walls of the Faldies Ruins. "I swear," He grumbled lowly, "you people have no faith."

Magilou groaned. "Please. It's not like we're believing in an Empyrean or anything." She waved her arms around in frustration. "Navigation isn't something that should need ' _faith_ ' for crying out loud!"

Eleanor glanced around in irritation. "I swear we've been here before. This floor plan looks extremely familiar."

Leo retorted irritably, " _Everything_  looks extremely familiar in these blasted ruins, Eleanor." He flipped the map of the area they had stolen from an exorcist around in his hands, squinting at the complicated diagram. "...I'm absolutely,  _positively_ sure that we're headed in the right direction!"

He didn't sound nearly as confident as his words.

Eizen massaged his eyebrows. "Then why have you flipped that map around a total of 7 times in the past minute?"

Leo glared at the reaper. "Sometimes  _perspective_ is a very valuable thing to have. You should try it sometimes." He shot back.

Laphicet cocked his head in worry. "...But... What different perspectives can there be in a two-dimensional map?"

Rokurou shrugged helplessly. "Best to not question it."

Leo glared at the lot of them as he trotted heatedly forward. "All of you, come on!" He pounded his chest. "Trust me! I know what I'm doing!"

SMACK.

Leo moaned as he readjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose, having ran smack into the wall of a dead end. He pushed his body off the stones with a groan.

Velvet facepalmed. "Faith, huh?"

Eleanor exhaled harshly in frustration. "Again?!" She groaned, glaring at the end of the corridor they had been following. "This makes 4 dead ends in 1 hour, Leo. You're lost." She accused.

"Agh! We'll be here forever!" Magilou slumped forward dejectedly. "Alas, the Calamity and friends have been bested in a way most foul and dastardly! Long live the glorious reign of the Abbey!"

Leo shook his head clean of stars and threw a disdainful look at the mutinous group before returning back to the map with a fervor. "No... now this dead end here confirms my suspicions!" He adjusted his glasses. "Ahah! The therion cage is this way for sure!" He cried.

Velvet's anger was palatable. "You've said that 4 times now! One for each damn dead end!" She roared. "Give me that map!" She swiped for the paper in Leo's hands.

The man held it deftly out of her reach. "Come on, Velvet! I know for sure where we should be going now!"

"Bullshit! I'm done with you wasting my time. Give it!" The therion's ire was terrifying to behold as she advanced alarmingly quickly towards the man.

Leo wasn't cowed in the least. "Never!" He declared, trotting away briskly, the map held high as if it were a flag of honor.

"Leo!" Velvet growled as she stormed after the man.

The rest of the group let out a collective sigh and followed after the two bickering group members.

"You know," Eizen commented in exasperation, "when I told him to steer his own ship, I wasn't aware that he would be this bad at navigation."

"Well, he's determined, I'll give him that much." Rokurou rubbed the back of his head as he watched Velvet begrudgingly give Leo one more chance with the map. He glanced at Laphicet. "You sure you can't help us find our way to the earthpulse point, kid?"

Laphicet shook his head sadly. "Yeah..." He held a fist up to his chest and admitted, "My senses can only tell where the actual point is, which is somewhere deeper in the ruins. But I can't tell you how to get there, since the route isn't a straight line."

Eleanor put a gloved hand on her temple. "That is most unfortunate. Honestly, there is a reason I always made sure to leave the navigation to Bienfu instead of Leo when we were patrolling for the Abbey."

Bienfu popped out in a flash of green. "And for good reason..." He agreed dejectedly, floating alongside the group. "I never thought any being, human, malak, or even daemon could be so bad at navigation."

Magilou laughed. "You let Bienfu do the navigating? That malak can barely find his own feet in the morning!"

Eleanor's face grew red. "We-well," she looked down to the side in embarrassment, fiddling with her fingers, "I admit I'm not the best at navigation either... When it comes to deciphering maps, it all just looks foreign to me, regardless of how familiar I am with the area."

Eizen shook his head. "I suppose you can't be worse than Leo."

Rather fittingly, just then a shout of anger rang out throughout the hallways as Leo ran into his fifth dead end in a row.

"Alright, that's it!" Velvet roared. "You give me that damn map right now before I eat you!" She demanded as she advanced intimidatingly towards the cornered man.

Leo glanced around the dead end incoherently, sputtering feebly in response, "B-but I could've sworn that...!" He flipped the map over again. A look of utter enlightenment dawned upon his face. "Oh... I get it now!" He pointed forward. "The therion cage is that way! For sure!"

"Oh no you don't. Not again!" Velvet growled, before promptly pouncing on the man.

"GAH! VELVET!"

The man wrestled for the map futilely. "I SWEAR I HAVE IT THIS TIME! PLEASE!"

Magilou chortled. "Oh my. It would seem that the Calamity is just as merciless as she is rumored to be."

Eleanor massaged her temples. "I'm afraid I agree with her methods at the moment. I'm extraordinarily tired of going in circles..."

Bienfu muttered sourly, "You all should've given the map to me, instead."

Laphicet just let out a small sigh.

Somehow, Leo managed to wriggle his way out of Velvet's grip. "I've got it, I've got it, alright?!" He cried, huffing and puffing. "Trust me!"

"That trust has been broken time and time again!" Velvet seethed. "You're totally lost! At this rate, we'll never find the therion. I'm sure  _anyone else_ here could give us better directions than you are! Even Hawk!"

By Laphicet's feet, Hawk yipped tauntingly.

Leo gave the pup a disdainful glare before pleading earnestly to the rest of the group.

"Come on guys! I've  _really_ got it now! Look!" He pleaded as he pointed to various points on the map. "These five points are all of the dead ends we've all come across, right? So, going by that information, we are currently here!" He pointed at a one of the dead ends. "And the cage is here! Just a few turns away!" His eyes leapt from person to person, pleading his case. "Come on guys! One more chance! Trust me!"

"No." Velvet deadpanned.

"Eleanor?" Leo turned to his old mentor.

She shook her head. "Velvet's right, Leo. You've led us astray one too many times."

"Try five too many times." Velvet muttered balefully under her breath.

"Phi?" Leo turned hopefully to the little malak.

Laphicet gave the man an apologetic look. "…Sorry Leo."

"Rokurou?"

The daemon shook his head. "Hey man, I'm itching for a fight. You can't fight stone walls."

"Eizen?"

The reaper sighed. "If we were on the Van Eltia at the moment and you were navigating, you'd be shark bait."

"…Magilou?" Leo tried desperately.

The witch shrugged. "I'm just here for the show." She admitted easily. "And I must say, walking around and seeing you smack face-first into walls got boring a long time ago."

Leo glanced at each one of the party members incredulously. "Come on guys! Look!" He patted the map incoherently. "Just three more turns and we're there! Left, right, and then left! Trust me! I'm not lost!"

Everyone responded instantly in an uproar.

"You clearly are!" Velvet yelled.

"You're the definition of lost!" Eizen pointed out.

"I'm... pretty sure you are." Laphicet observed.

"You're totally lost." Rokurou shook his head.

"Sounds like denial!" Magilou sang.

"Leo!" Eleanor ground out through gritted teeth.

Leo fought valiantly against the collective group ire. "B-But look!" He waved the map in their faces as if it would make any more sense that way. "It's  _right there_! You've gotta believe me!"

Velvet let out a frustrated growl, throwing up her hands. "Alright! That's it!" She thrust an expectant hand forward, eyes narrowed dangerously. "Give  _me_ that map or I'm taking it by force."

Backpedaling furiously away from the enraged woman, Leo stammered, "Whoa now! Hold on! Let's not do anything drastic-!"

Bump.

Everyone blinked as the man backed up straight into a figure who was also coming around the corner at the same time as him.

A figure wearing a white uniform with the emblem of the Abbey emblazoned on it.

"What the-w-who the hell?!" The lone exorcist orderly stammered, just as surprised as the rest of them, fumbling clumsily for his sword.

"Ah. Perfect."

Velvet's words all but dripped with evil intent, sending an involuntary shiver of fear down the poor orderly's spine. Her piercing amber eyes locked onto his with all the grace of a falcon hunting a mouse.

She strolled up slowly towards the exorcist, ignoring his unsheathed sword. "My acquaintance here seems to think that the best way to get to the therion cage is to take a left here, a right, and then another left. Would you mind confirming his directions?" She asked casually, approaching the shaking exorcist.

"Wh-what?!" The exorcist finally registered the woman's words. His eyes widened in shock. "Y-you're here for Medissa!" His grip on his sword tightened.

"I won't let you foul daemons through!" He roared as he summoned his malakhim right in front of Velvet; two falcon-headed malakhim who raised their staffs in unison.

Without even looking, Velvet unleashed her claw and bashed one malakhim away into a wall and devoured the second one right on the spot. Her eyes never left the exorcist as the screams of the dying malakhim rang through the halls.

"That doesn't answer the question. Is he correct?" She shrugged. "Seems like a simple question to me."

The exorcist gaped, utterly without malakhim and at the mercy of this seemingly  _invincible_ daemon who was  _asking her where the therion was_.

No! He was better than this! He was an exorcist of the Abbey! He had sworn to defend the therion cage with all his life! This was the way of reason!

He roared a battle cry and charged at the daemon. Velvet just rolled her eyes and sidestepped the man's laughably predictable swings. "I'm warning you now," she leapt into a swift backflip to avoid a wide sword sweep, "that I'm not exactly in the  _best_ of moods right now." Her eyes were dark as she glared at Leo over her shoulder. "I've been in these damn ruins for who the hell knows how long, and I'm sick and tired of it."

With a clang, her blade met the exorcist's and held it easily captive. Almost effortlessly, Velvet proceeded to push the two crossed blades harmlessly away from the two of them. Capitalizing on the advantage, the woman leant forwards uncomfortably close to the helpless, trembling exorcist watching wide eyes.

"Come on." She goaded the man. "It's a simple question." She smirked. "But if you don't want to tell me... I'd be happy to start eating body parts. One by one. Starting with the legs." Her daemon arm drew tauntingly close to the man's limbs, all the while the man was helpless to defend himself.

His eyes bulged in pure terror.

"AAAAAAAAHHHH!" He screamed loudly, dropping his blade and scrambling back away from the monster toying with him like a cat with a mouse. "I-I'm sorry! Don't kill me! Please!" He whimpered.

Velvet rolled her eyes and kneeled down to the sniveling man's level. "If you don't want me to kill you, then answer the question." She drawled matter-of-factly.

"O-okay... W-what was i-it again?" The exorcist stuttered as he wiped tears of fright out of his eyes.

Velvet repeated, "My infuriating acquaintance tells me that the way to go to the therion cage is to take a left at this corridor," she pointed forward, "and then a right, and then a left. Is he correct?" She asked simply.

The Abbey orderly blinked, mortal fear for his life momentarily forgotten.

"…Wait a second." He scrunched his eyebrows. "That route would take you straight back towards Hellawes. You'd end up right where you started."

Velvet sighed, slapping a palm on her face. "...Ugh." Her ire radiated from her person in droves. "Why… am I not surprised." She threw a glare at her infuriating friend.

Leo's eyes were wide in disbelief. "Th-that can't be..."

He stared at the foreign-looking map in his hands in horror.

Magilou sighed. "And the denial settles in."

Velvet shook her head in exasperation, turning her gaze back to the captive she had at her mercy. "So. How do you get to the therion cage?" She prompted. For good measure, she flexed her daemon arm.

The man gulped visibly. "U-uh..." He shook his head. "W-well it should've been really easy to find. Right once you enter the ruins, you just keep going straight until you come across the stairs on the right side. I shouldn't take more than 10 minutes to find, even if you had no map..." He blinked. "...Exactly how long have you people been trying to find the cage?"

Eleanor sighed. "About 5 hours."

The exorcist orderly gasped. "W-what?!" He glanced around at the group of daemons holding him captive. "Are you serious?! How is that even possible?!"

Velvet turned slowly to face Leo like a vengeful wraith. "Yes... A good question." She glared at the man. "How could someone possibly be so efficient at  _wasting everyone's time_?"

The exorcist gaped at Leo. "Seriously, dude. What the hell?"

Leo glared sourly at the orderly. "Hey. Shut up. Aren't we supposed to be enemies?"

Rokurou shook his head. "But he does have a point." He put a finger up to his chin in thought. "Now that I think about it, didn't we come across a staircase like that right as we entered?"

"E-er," Leo stuttered hurriedly, "I-I don't know what you're-"

Eizen nodded. "Yeah, we did. And I'm positive I recall the very phrase Leo applied to it."

"I have no idea-"

Magilou grinned evilly. "Wasn't it, 'There's no way in hell that's the way we're supposed to go?'"

Leo gulped as a very,  _very_ displeased Velvet shot ice cold daggers his way.

He sighed and muttered reluctantly, "I-I guess I was..." He fiddled with his hands in embarrassment. "...a bit lost." He admitted.

Everyone groaned simultaneously in response.

Even the orderly. "Come on, dude. Why the hell do these people even keep you around?"

Velvet waved a casual hand. "Honestly? I ask myself that question every day."

"You know," the orderly pointed out, "my da always used to tell me, a man who knows his place in this world, knows his place in this world."

Leo raised an eyebrow at the man whom had all of a sudden appeared perfectly comfortable surrounded by a group of intruding daemons. "...You're one strange exorcist, you know that?"

"You're one to talk." Eleanor muttered under her breath.

Leo rolled his eyes as he waved a hand towards the sedate exorcist, "Hawk, if you would?"

The malak obliged with a yip and the man slumped against the ancient wall, his eyes rolling into the back of his head. The group was alone once more.

Velvet promptly whacked Leo in the back of the head.

"OW!"

Velvet had her eyes clenched in agitation. "So, next on the list of things you should never,  _ever_  attempt, next to cooking and fishing, is map-reading."

Leo whined, "But my grandma said I was a born leader."

Velvet scoffed, waving a hand. "Must've lost that trait somewhere along the way."

"Yeah I must've. Along with my sense of self preservation." Leo muttered sourly, rubbing the bump on the back of his head in agitation.

"Clearly. You are still following us, after all." Velvet shrugged.

Eizen splayed his hands. "From now on at least, let's just make sure that all he does is follow us, and never tries to lead us again."

Eleanor rubbed her temples. "Seconded. Let's go."

As the rest of the group moved forwards in the direction of the therion cage, which was the complete opposite direction Leo had said, the man let out a miserable sigh as he watched them go.

"Man." He muttered. "I just wanted to help."

Hawk coughed in amusement.

"Shut it."

* * *

"It matters not what dreadful form my body may take. I will revive Innominat and change this wrenched world!"

Medissa, the mother whose daughter had become a daemon due to malevolence, roared as she changed into her full therion form; her body elongating into the serpentine form of a snake, her hair combining into sentient appendages resembling smaller snakes. She hissed viciously at the intruders who would dare sully Shepherd Artorius's Ideals.

"Tch." Velvet took in the therion Medissa and her summoned group of snakes surrounding them in the cage. "If that's how it is, fine." She readied her clawed arm. "We'll take you by force!"

"I'd like to see you try!" With a fierce snarl, the therion Medissa called for the dozens of snake daemons to attack. The monsters closed in on the encircled group.

Leo took in the situation quickly. He had a thought.

"Guys! I'm gonna try something." He ejected the remaining bullets in his rifle and slotted in red-colored shells.

"Why do I get a bad feeling about this?" Magilou wondered sardonically as she flicked her guardians, releasing a water arte, driving off the surrounding monsters and giving the group room to breathe.

As the arte dissipated alongside the enraged hissing of the many snake daemons, Leo raised his rifle up to his shoulder with a deep breath. He adjusted the grip of his left hand with a firm squeeze and thrust the gun into his shoulder a few times to ensure his lean was correct. He grinned savagely as the daemons charged at him.

"Don't worry about it!" He reassured. His finger slipped into the trigger guard. "I'm better at this than my map-reading."

CA-CRACK!

FWOOM!

The rest of the group gaped as Leo's rifle  _spat fire_ , causing pellets of flame to fly through the air in a brilliant flash towards the monsters. The incendiary scattershot pellets impacted indiscriminately around the group of daemons he had aimed at and wreaked havoc whenever they contacted a daemon.

The snake daemons hissed in agony, thrashing in vain as their bodies were simultaneously pierced by malak-infused metal and set alight by the incendiary compound the projectiles were tipped with.

"HAHA!" Leo whooped hysterically, cocking his rifle and whipping around, firing again.

CA-CRACK!

FWOOM!

Three snakes were hit in the spread and were engulfed in flames, shrieking in pain as they died on the spot.

"SUCK ON THAT!"

Leo spun to the side, aiming at another patch of daemons.

CA-CRACK!

FWOOM!

"WHOO!"

The rest of the group exchanged glances as Leo danced around, firing indiscriminately at the hordes of daemons with incendiary ammo. The heavy-handed odor of sulfur and firestone hung heavily in the air, increased with each blinding flash of another discharge.

"Uh, Leo?" Laphicet began hesitantly. "They're not stopping..." He winced as another bang tore through the chamber, followed with another set of pained hissing.

Rokurou muttered, "The man's got more bloodlust in him than a daemon. And that's coming from a daemon." A series of metallic clicks and the crank of a lever signaled a full reload before the rifleman began spitting fire once more.

Velvet blinked, staring at the man as he dodged some snake lunges and fired point-blank at their backs. "He's a damn pyromaniac." She muttered.

Down by her feet, Hawk rolled his eyes.

"WHOO!" Leo whooped as he fired again, plowing away another group of snake daemons. "This is  _SO MUCH FUN_!"

Eizen shook his head. "So. He's one of  _those_ types of people." He muttered.

Eleanor sighed, a palm cradling her forehead. "Not again, Leo…"

Velvet glanced at the exorcist in surprise. "You knew about this?"

Eleanor sighed, nodding reluctantly. "Ever since he got Hawk as a malak, he's just had a penchant for setting things on fire." She winced as another bout of flame lit up the chamber. "He must've been working on this bullet for ages."

The therion stared. "He's insane." She realized.

By her feet, Hawk nodded sagely.

Abruptly, the shots stopped.

Cocking his rifle, Leo whirled around to fire at the next batch of daemons when all he found was an empty scorch-marked chamber, save for Medissa and the group. He blinked as he noticed both parties staring at him with wide eyes. "What?"

The snake-therion Medissa stared with incredulous eyes. "You're crazy." She stated.

Velvet nodded in agreement. "Seriously."

Magilou grinned. "You've cracked! You've gone completely cuckoo!"

Leo glared at the witch. "Pot calling the kettle black, don't you think?" He retorted defensively.

"Oho! My mental state is just fine, thank you very much!" Magilou held up an index finger to her temple with a grin.

"Then why the hell are you wearing books for a skirt?!"

"Enough!" Everyone turned as Medissa hissed in anger. She flung an arm out and pointed at Velvet. "There's no escape for you, Calamity! You're already dead!"

"See if I care." Velvet scoffed, unsheathing her blade with a flick of her arm. "You're mine!"

The two groups charged.

* * *

"It's over."

With a moan of pain, Medissa, having reverted to human form, pushed herself up to scowl at Velvet. Her wounds were deep.

"Curse… Curse you!" She took a deep breath, coughing out blood.

"… _Lord of Calamity_!"

The cell was silent.

Velvet raised an unimpressed eyebrow. "Lord of Calamity...?" She tasted the title.

"That's the name…" Medissa hacked out some more blood, glaring at the other therion with hatred. "The name of the daemon lord. The daemon lord who will bring about the Age of Chaos."

"The unrepentant embodiment of malevolence whose blind pursuit of self-gratification will rain destruction upon the world. The irredeemable, uncontrollable personification of human sins…"

She lifted her head with effort in pure hatred. "…An evil like you!" She spat.

Leo watched Velvet with a worry in his eyes in the silence that followed the hatred-filled declaration.

"…Daemon, therion, Lord of Calamity…"

Velvet Crowe made eye contact with Medissa. She waved an uncaring hand.

"Call me whatever you like."

She continued heedlessly, "But if I'm this supposed lord of daemons…" Her gaze fell on the other therion. Her eyes narrowed. "Then you're just a minion to be used as I please. Nothing more."

Medissa struggled to her feet. "No… I… refuse… What happened to my Diana was my fault… That's why…" Her eyes narrowed, and malevolence cloaked her once again. "I will fight you until my dying breath!" She declared, raising her arm.

"Stop!" Laphicet cried, running in between the two. "Enough mothers have died! I won't let you join them!"

Leo watched as Laphicet and Eleanor calmed the woman down and as Velvet's stance shifted warily out of combat stance. His eyes narrowed at Velvet's stony expression.

_The Lord of Calamity… Huh?_

"It's all my fault… I'm so sorry… Forgive me… Diana…"

With her daughter's name on her lips, Medissa collapsed unconscious to the hard stone floor of her cell.

"She's all right. Looks like she's just unconscious." Rokurou assuaged Laphicet's worry.

Velvet shifted her body and put a hand on her hip. "Let's grab her and haul her back."

Eizen trotted forward towards the unconscious therion. "I'll place her under a binding arte, just in case."

Magilou hummed. "Gotta hand it to the Abbey." She grinned. "Very resourceful, taking advantage of Medissa's regrets like that… Making her into a therion who would do their bidding."

Eleanor shuddered. "It's… It's just so cruel…"

"Who cares? Reason above all, no?"

The praetor hugged herself. "It's true. The way I feel… it goes against all reason." Her gaze fell on the therion currently being encompassed in Eizen's binding arte. "There's no telling what'll happen to Hellawes once we take Medissa out of here. And yet I'm doing exactly that… all on account of my own hangups." Her eyes closed. "Even crushing Medissa's honest resolve."

Leo looked on sadly.

His path and hers were so similar. The crushed face of Jason Reef as he stood over his father's grave. The suffering of the townsfolk in Hellawes. The utter eradication of the Haria villagers.

The only reasonable thing would be to stop doing what he was doing.

But he had decided that reason wasn't the right thing to follow.

Velvet crossed her arms. "According to 'reason,'" she replied callously, "malevolence is the fault of the individual. You assume no responsibility or guilt for what happens to them."

Eleanor didn't meet her eyes, instead staring at the unconscious form of the mother whose will she had broken. "I refuse to turn a blind eye to the consequences of my actions." She gazed up at Velvet's eyes. "I chose this path to seek the truth, not to deny it. If I'm to betray reason…"

She shook her head. "Then that is the very least I should do." She reaffirmed.

Leo nodded silently in agreement. He knew there was a reason he'd counted Eleanor as a friend.

A world of contradictions.

It took a strong individual to face the truth, and to live on despite it.

"…You're too much, you know that?" Leo's gaze flew to an irritated Velvet. "You and Medissa both."

Her gaze slid away from Eleanor and instead focused on an empty corner of the cell. She sighed and closed her eyes.

"Quit overthinking things." She waved a hand. "Just blame all the suffering on the 'Lord of Calamity.'" She turned around with a huff. "Makes life easier." With that declaration, she walked away alone.

"Velvet, I…" Eleanor grasped for words.

The therion stopped at the entrance to the cell.

"I'm not trying to cheer you up." She stated. The rest of the group's eyes were on her back. "I'm just saying it doesn't bother me. Whatever's coming, I can handle it."

As the woman walked unaffectedly away from the group, Leo's fists clenched.

* * *

The hoot of an owl echoed far and wide across the desolate snowy landscape, reaching the ears of the group as they prepared camp for the night on their way back from the Faldies ruins.

The night was bitterly cold, accompanied by a light snowfall that was landing softly on the copse of trees providing shelter to the group. High in the sky, a waxing moon graced the quiet landscape with its silent vigilance.

"Are you sure you can manage it?" Velvet asked worriedly as she glanced keenly at the ingredients and utensils laid out on a blanket over the snow next to the gathered firewood.

Laphicet nodded, doing final checks on all of the gathered ingredients. "I've watched you cook more than enough! I think I can manage a little meatball stew, Velvet." He said reproachfully.

The therion's eyes were reluctant. "If you say so Phi, I won't stop you as long as you're careful." She gave the malak an encouraging smile. "…Good luck. The first meal is always the hardest to make."

Laphicet gave her a grin in return. "I'll do my best!" He promised.

Eleanor trotted over, a pile of firewood in her hands. "Don't worry, Velvet. I'll make sure he does everything right! In the meantime, try not to overdo your sparring session with Leo." She dropped the wood, adding it to the pile with a huff. "You might not feel anything but to a human, it's an extremely cold night." She shivered, hugging herself.

Velvet shrugged. "I will. On that point, your cooking is quite good, I'll admit." Her eyes narrowed. "But if anything goes wrong with Phi, it'll be on your head." She threatened.

"Don't worry Velvet!" Laphicet piped up. "I'll be  _fine_! You've already had me help with a lot of dishes, and I didn't burn myself or anything!"

"Alright, alright." The therion waved an encouraging hand. "Good luck."

Leo trotted over to the unlit campfire, adjusting his gauntlet blade and shivering all the while. "H-hey Velvet?" He asked through chattering teeth. "I don't suppose we could get started before dawn? I'm kinda freezing to death here."

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "Get started? I hope you know by now that you need to warm up first before any strenuous exercise."

Leo shuddered. "Yes! Warm up! I'd love to do that! Let's go!" He urged fervently.

She rolled her eyes. "Alright, alright. But I don't want to hear any complaints about being tired."

"Yeah whatever, hurry up!"

Laphicet yelled out as the two headed off to train, "Good luck Leo, Velvet!" He grinned. "I'll make something good for you guys to eat!"

Leo grinned back. "Looking forward to it!" He called.

"Don't burn yourself!" Velvet warned over her shoulder.

As the two walked out of sight of the group and deeper into the copse of trees, Leo gave Velvet a nudge. "You worry too much about that kid, you know that?"

Velvet shrugged. "Someone has to."

A companionable silence fell between the two of them. The forest surrounding them was utterly motionless as the two trudged through the packed snow in the dark. Patches of moonlight dotted the snow-covered forest floor, briefly illuminating their path through the woods.

Eventually, the trees gave way to a patch of empty land, at the far side of which was the edge of a cliff. The moon watched as the two trotted wordlessly towards the middle of the open area and warmed up.

While getting into position in the snow across from her pupil, Velvet broke the silence, "I hope you've been keeping up on your exercises."

"Yep." Leo nodded, imitating a swiping sword. "Every night before bed." He shrugged helplessly. "…Well, mostly every night." He grinned cheekily.

Velvet sighed. "I suppose that's the best I could hope for with you." She shook her head, getting to the point. "Alright then. Let's get started."

Leo nodded determinedly, tensing the muscles in his body. "Okay. Try not to beat the stuffing out of me, would ya?"

She scoffed. "Yeah sure, I'll  _try_."

With that, she burst into motion, charging forward at the man.

Leo quickly unsheathed his gauntlet blade and went on the defensive, raising his blade at an angle to deflect the extending gauntlet blade of his friend. The two blades met and slid off each other with a sharp clang that rang throughout the surrounding wilderness.

The therion followed up quickly with a rising kick, throwing snow into the air as the hidden blade in her boot extended.

Leo ducked and felt the wind rush over his head as the leg sailed over it. In retaliation, he swung at her stable leg with his blade.

Velvet leapt up and dodged his blade, bringing down another slash at the man's head.

A prompt side-step allowed Leo to dodge the blade. Quickly, the man swept his feet at Velvet's heels. The foot made contact and took her off-balance for a second. Quickly spinning around, Leo slashed at her back.

Only to encounter air with his blade. He looked up in astonishment as the therion sailed over his head in an inhuman backflip and promptly twisted herself around to send an iron boot straight into his back.

SMACK!

"GAH!" Leo uttered involuntarily as he sailed into the snow a few meters away from where his opponent alighted softly on the snow. He shook the stars out of his head and angled his head up just as Velvet's cold calcite blade snuck its way to meet the naked flesh of his neck.

The two of them stayed silent there as the world around them regained its tranquility. Leo's breathing was rough and quick, while Velvet's was barely auditable.

Leo groaned, clutching at his back in pain. "Goddamnit… woman." He breathed. "I said…  _not_ to beat the… stuffing out of me."

Velvet shrugged uncaringly, sheathing her blade. "And I said I'd try." She pointed out

Despite himself, Leo grinned. "Still… not too shabby, huh?"

Velvet shrugged, helping the huffing man to his feet. "I suppose, compared to what you were like before." Her eyes narrowed. "But your form is still sloppy." She lectured. "Your blows still have too much weight behind them. When they don't contact, you leave yourself open and give yourself too little leverage to dodge. You need to work on that."

Leo nodded, still out of breath. "Alright, fair enough."

His teacher walked back to position across from him. "Again." She tensed her muscles.

Leo slumped in exhaustion. This was going to be a long night.

She charged once more under the moonlight.

Break.

"Argh… I've never been so tired in my life..." Leo moaned as he slumped gingerly onto the snow, dangling his feet off the edge of the cliff in exhaustion.

His teacher hmphed and settled down lightly next to him on the cliff. "What did I say about complaints?"

"You don't want to hear them, yeah, yeah." Leo waved her off, instead looking off into the distance with a labored sigh.

"Still," Velvet conceded, "you did quite well today. Just keep doing what you're doing."

Leo rolled his shoulders with a groan. "Yeah, thanks. But I'm never going to get to your level, honestly."

She shrugged. "Probably not. But you'll be able to hold your own… eventually."

"Gee. Thanks for having faith in me." Leo deadpanned.

Velvet shrugged in response. "It's better than having faith in your cooking."

His eye twitched. "Will you stop bringing that up?"

"Probably not."

"Figures."

The two fell into a comfortable silence, listening to the soft wind brushing their faces.

Leo's eyes were drawn to the eternally quiet sprawling landscape before them. The stars were bright in the sky, accompanying the brilliant moon shining a cold light onto the endless sea of white surrounding the forest. Down the cliff, Leo's eyes could make out a pinprick of a campfire between the trees.

He commented lightly, "I hope Laphicet's meatballs turn out okay. I'm starving."

Velvet had a soft smile on her face. "He's been helping out a lot with everyone's dishes. I'm sure they'll come out delicious."

Her smile faded from her expression. "…Although that's up to you to decide. I couldn't tell either way."

The silence returned at that depressing reminder. A harsh breeze suddenly found its way into Leo's coat, making him shiver.

His mind inevitably turned to the events of today. Of how she had walked away from everyone after the fight.

He broke the silence.

"You know I'm not going to just let you shoulder everything, right?"

Velvet sighed in resignation, looking off into the distance. "...I figured as much, Leo. Although I still can't fathom why you feel the need to waste your time on me."

Leo shrugged. "Who the hell knows." He shook his head and nudged Velvet with his elbow, bringing her gaze to him. "Hey. I'm here for you, alright? I chose this path as well. You don't have to go it alone."

Velvet's gaze was strong. "I told you, didn't I? It doesn't bother me. Whatever's coming, I can handle it."

"And I don't dispute that fact." Leo returned just as resolutely. He narrowed his eyes. "Nonetheless. I'm here."

Velvet sighed in resignation, looking off into the distance. "So, I've learned." She scoffed. "You're more persistent than a fly, you know that?"

Leo shrugged. "I've been told it's one of my better traits."

"Oh yeah?" She smirked mockingly. "It sure beats your constant complaining."

"Well. At least you understand that much." Leo grinned. He let out a groan and let his body fall backwards into the snow with a sigh. "Gods, I'm so tired."

Velvet huffed. "Like I said."

Leo let out a sigh. "Woman, you just don't understand. I'm sure if you were human, you'd be suffering just as much as I am right now."

In response, Velvet just raised a single eyebrow.

Leo rolled his eyes. "…Well, alright, fine. I guess you wouldn't be." He conceded. "Just… shut up." He waved vaguely in her direction. "Stop looking at me like that."

"Like what?"

"Like you're an all-powerful demon lord whose only wish is to devour all the happiness in the world." Leo explained drolly. "You know. Like that."

"Right." Velvet snorted humorously. "I'm afraid I'm just too evil, mister exorcist. You'll have to kill me to save the world."

Leo sat up with a grin. "Well, what can I say. I hate being happy."

"Clearly. Your choice in friends says that much."

"Man, you just really don't want me coming along, do you?" Leo muttered as he abruptly stood up, dashing the snow from his coat and glaring down at the woman.

Velvet didn't react, simply staring off at some arbitrary point in the distance.

"Yeah. I don't." She admitted quietly.

Leo's gaze softened. "Sorry to disappoint..." He took a gentlemanly bow. "Leo the fly, at your service."

She let out a huff of amusement in response.

Leo's boots crackled in the snow as he shifted his weight and offered the sitting woman a hand.

"Come along then, 'Lord of Calamity.'" He uttered the ridiculous title with a mocking grin. "Let's go get dinner."

Velvet rolled her eyes. "…Sure."

She took his hand.

The wind began to die down as the two made their way back down the hill towards the warm campfire. The quiet returned to the clearing, the only evidence of their presence that being the footprints dotted throughout the snow, slowly being erased by the light snowfall.


	36. C34 - Lucid

**Chapter 34 – Lucid.**

Wood creaked menacingly in the fog.

All around Leo, the timber of the Van Eltia was covered in a fine coat of moisture, leaving the railing he was leaning upon wet to the touch. The horizon he normally gazed out towards was conspicuously absent, instead replaced by a dense layer of fog surrounding the ship.

Everything was silent. Even the sound of the waves was absent as the ship slid through the waters silently like a ghost vessel.

It was almost… haunting.

 _The next earthpulse point. Eastgand. Aball…_ Leo's thoughts were utterly consumed.

"BOO!"

"AHHH! MAGILOU!" Leo screamed as he leapt out of his skin, cursing the witch who had evilly popped up behind him. He caught his breath and glared at the grinning woman. "What the  _hell_  is your problem?!"

"Hmm." The witch took that question at literal face value and pretended to be pensive. She snapped her fingers. "Oh. I don't know. Let's say,  _everything_?"

"Yeah. Let's." Leo muttered, wiping the moisture off his hands and straightening his back. "The heck have you been up to lately, anyways? I haven't seen you since we left Titania."

Magilou shrugged vaguely. "Who knows? Here, there, wherever the wind blows, I go."

"You tend to do that when you're on a ship with a sail." Leo pointed out.

"Exactly!"

Leo sighed in response. "I just can't get a straight answer out of you, can I."

"Nope." She pointed an index finger at her temple with a shameless smile.

"Figures."

Shaking his head, Leo went back to staring at the fog, dismissing the witch from his mind. Surprisingly, Leo heard footsteps on wood as Magilou joined him, leaning on the railing besides him and looking out distantly into the endless fog.

"Hey, Leo?"

Her voice was quiet when she spoke next. "…What do you dream of?"

He blinked. "Is there a reason why you're asking?"

Magilou tilted her head upwards, towards the invisible sun.

She intoned, "Some people dream of happiness. Others, of sorrow." Her fingers drummed on the railing. "Some people dream about fantasy. Others dream about reality." Her gaze fell, her eyes unseeing. "You can tell a lot about someone from what they dream of. Some would go so far as to say that to know a person's dream is to know the very essence of their conscious being." She had a strange smile on her face.

Her head turned, not towards Leo, but towards the front of the ship. Towards the dark figure who Leo just now realized was hunched over there.

Velvet's expression was tortured as she slept. It always was, now that he thought about it. There was little doubt as to what she was dreaming of.

Magilou turned back to Leo, that strange smile still present. "I wonder what you dream of, oh strange traveler."

Somehow, Leo felt that there was much, much more behind what Magilou was saying.

All around them, the ominous fog seemed to tighten its grasp on the ship as it seemed to sail backwards in time.

* * *

"No. Goddamnit. NO."

Velvet chuckled lightly. "I guess some things never change."

Leo moaned, falling to his knees at the sight that awaited the group from the Taliesin Docks. "NOOOO!" He screamed dramatically.

Eleanor recoiled in shock. "Wh-what?! Leo?! What's wrong?!"

"What the hell are you doing?!" Eizen muttered urgently. "You're attracting the attention of every person on the dock!"

Leo shook his head wordlessly in agony.

Velvet elaborated simply with a shrug, "He doesn't like Taliesin."

Leo muttered sourly, "I thought things might've changed. It's been three goddamn years."

"Sounds like wishful thinking if you ask me." She smirked.

"Shut it."

A befuddled Rokurou spoke up, "Sorry, could someone please tell me what the hell the issue is here?"

In response, Leo thrust an angry finger at the town. "THAT IS!" He moaned.

Laphicet blinked, following the finger pointing to the general town area up on the hill. "The… town is?"

Hawk cocked his head in confusion.

"I… hate…  _stairs_ …" Leo seethed.

Everyone blinked.

"Oh…" Laphicet trailed off uncertainly.

Abruptly, Magilou burst into snickers. "Stairs? That's it? You're such a wimp!"

Leo glared at the infuriating woman. "Do you  _know_  how many steps there are in this damn city?"

Eleanor asked in worry, "Are there really that many?" She gazed up at the city nervously. "There do seem to be quite a few flights of stairs…"

Leo moaned. "More than a thousand steps." He slumped to his knees. "Just to get from the docks to the Perniya Path. I counted." He already sounded exhausted.

Eizen nodded. "I've heard from other sailors that this particular port is indeed well-known for its lengthy flights of stairs, in addition to their affinity for felines."

Velvet affirmed, "That's right. A lot of people take to calling this town Whisker-sin simply because of just how many cats are in the city."

Leo abruptly got up. "Argh! Don't get me started on those damn cats!" He sniffed. "Aside from being little balls of sneeze-inducing fur, those bastards just  _love_ to trip me when I'm going up the stairs. I swear they have it in for me!"

Laphicet winced. "Sounds painful."

Magilou twined her hands behind her neck casually. "How cat-astrophic!"

Eleanor put a hand on her forehead in response.

Velvet smirked. "I still remember that one time we came to Taliesin to trade directly." She shook her head in disbelief. "I swear, you're just a magnet for the wrath of animals. First pigs, then a horde of cats chasing you all around town."

The man glared at her. "I remember that time too. As I seem to recall, you were too busy laughing your ass off to save me from that horde of dirtbags."

She shrugged. "What can I say? I was just tired from all the stairs we'd been climbing that day."

"But we were going  _down_  the stairs that day!" Leo retorted heatedly.

Eleanor blinked and turned to Velvet. "You sound like you know this area pretty well."

The therion explained lightly, "I grew up near here. Keep on going, and you'll run into Aball, my home village."

Leo's face grew stiff.

Eleanor came to the realization quietly, "Then… the therion is…"

"Yeah." Velvet's eyes slid distantly away. "Somewhere in my village." She affirmed.

The exorcist wasn't exactly sure how to deal with the topic. "Is… that okay?"

"No one will know me there." Her eyes were cold and determined.

"Everyone I knew… I already devoured."

A shocked silence followed the declaration.

Abruptly, Velvet shook her head and started walking forwards. "It doesn't matter. Let's just get going."

As the group followed the woman, Leo stood there silently next to the Van Eltia, watching the receding form of his friend in concern.

* * *

"Are… we… there yet?!" Magilou huffed as she trudged up another set of stairs, sweat dripping off the hair in front of her face.

Leo, trotting laboriously next to her, threw her a glare. "Still think… I'm a… wimp?!" He ground out.

She stuck a petulant tongue at him in response.

Leo exhaled sharply, grasping at the clay walls for support as he made his way up. "Just because… I ended up being right… doesn't… make me… feel any better…" He groaned, trudging his way up the stairs.

Trudging behind the two of them, Eleanor spoke up. "Come on people, let's go!" She encouraged fervently. "One step in front of the other!"

Leo sent his teacher a half-hearted glare over his shoulder in response. "The hell do you think I'm do-GAH!"

_NEAROW!_

Leo yelped as his next step landed on top of a nearby cat, who yowled in displeasure at the sudden weight and dashed off, leaving the man in a perilously unbalanced position. He swore, flailing his arms wildly. "SHIII-"

Abruptly a firm hand grasped onto his, stabilizing him. Velvet rolled her eyes as she helped plant both of Leo's feet soundly on the stairs. "Be careful!" She scolded.

Leo sighed, wiping the sweat off his forehead. "Careful's my middle name. Didn't you know?"

Eizen was unimpressed. "If that's so, then why is your shoe untied?" He gestured at the man's boot.

"Mother-!" Leo swore as he bent down to tie his shoe.

Meanwhile, Magilou groaned, leaning on a wall as the group ground to a halt. "This is unbecoming of a magician such as I!" She exhaled sharply. "Grounded like a flightless Pengyon! Oh, the pain I must endure!" She languished.

Velvet smirked vindictively. "If we let you use your guardians in town, you'd draw all sorts of unwanted attention." She waved a hand. "I'm afraid you're just going to have to walk like the rest of us." She didn't sound very afraid.

"You're just doing this because you're enjoying watching me suffer!" She accused.

The therion shrugged. "Who knows?"

"Hey! That's my line!" Magilou seethed indignantly.

Eleanor glanced back down the stairs at their progress. "Looks like we've made considerable progress away from the port already. The main square should be just up ahead."

Rokurou observed, "You're taking the climb quite well, Eleanor. You've got quite the discipline for training."

Eleanor looked away bashfully at the complement. "It's nothing." She waved him off. "If I couldn't handle a few flights of stairs, there's no way I would survive being an exorcist."

Leo glared sourly. "What, so I died?"

The praetor pointed out dismissively, "You never enrolled. If you had, I'm certain you would've been forced to undergo severe physical conditioning. The Abbey  _does_ have standards, you know."

He winced. "Ouch." He clicked his tongue. "I'll have you know resent that."

"Get going or get left behind!" Velvet called over her shoulder, climbing the stairs once more.

Leo groaned and forced his body back into the monotonous motion of stair-climbing, catching up to the therion. "Slave-driver!" He yelled resentfully.

"Did you expect any different from the Lord of Calamity?" Velvet responded tauntingly.

"Listen!" Leo's eye twitched. "Just because you got this dramatic new title does  _not_ give you the right to lord it over me like that!"

"Why not?" She asked curiously.

"…Because! If you do…" Leo mouthed wordlessly as he grasped for a comeback. "…I'll be the one to cook tonight! Then you'll rue this day! Mark my words!"

Laphicet cocked his head. "But why would that be a bad thing? Wouldn't that just mean less work for her?"

Velvet shook her head. "Phi… you don't wanna know."

Laphicet blinked.

Velvet turned her gaze back to the man. "Leo, if you go within five steps of any cooking utensil, I will personally force you to run up and down these stairs five times, back and forth, or until you pass out." Her expression was dark. "Whichever comes first. Now get going!" She snarled.

Leo gulped. "Y-yes ma'am!" He scrambled forward, suddenly bursting with energy.

Magilou let out another groan before following, muttering sourly under her breath.

"Come on Miss Magilou! You can do it!" Bienfu encouraged, hovering in front of her as she climbed. "I believe in you!"

"Bienfu…" She growled under her breath. "Don't do that." She seethed.

The malak blinked. "Bien?"

"THAT. Stop doing THAT." She pointed sourly at the malak.

"Do what?! I'm not doing anything wrong!" He cried in confusion.

"You're  _flying_." The witch pointed out sourly. "If you want supper tonight, you'll get down on your cutesy little legs and  _walk with me_." She grinned evilly. "Then you can really help cheer me on."

The malak's eyes were wide in horror. "B-BIEEEEN!" He cried, sinking down dejectedly to the steps. "Ugh!" With two squeaks, his two paws touched down on the stairs.

Satisfied, Magilou pointed forwards dramatically. "Good! Now, lead the way, my faithful companion!"

"Bieeheheeen…" The malak muttered as he complied. "These steps are so tall…"

Up ahead, Leo let out a massive sigh of relief as he collapsed forward over the last step with a moan.

"Hngg…." He moaned, rubbing his cheek against the hot stone flooring of the main plaza of Taliesin. "I… made it…"

Hawk yipped in congratulations, giving the man a lick square on the nose.

"Quit it you worthless, teleporting mutt…" Leo half-heartedly swatted at his malak.

Velvet looked down with amusement at the man sprawled out onto the floor. "You know that's only a third of the stairs you'll have to climb today, right?"

"Don't remind me." Leo let out shortly, sighing in temporary relief.

Rokurou and Eizen were the next to make it to the top, stepping gingerly around the prone form of the gasping rifleman.

Looking around, Rokurou muttered, "Damn. Impressive."

"Aye." Eizen agreed.

All around them, the splendor of Taliesin was in full display for all to see. High above them, cargo was being pulled on skylines powered by massive windmills. Towering bright white castle walls encompassed cliff faces, carving out homes for the citizens. High above their heads in the distance, the eastern gate could be seen.

Eleanor caught her breath as she and Laphicet scaled the last step and took in the sight for themselves.

"Wow." Eleanor commented. "This town is quite impressive."

"Yeah…" Velvet muttered absently. "It's like nothing changed since I last saw it."

Leo blinked, taking in the sights. "Huh…" He muttered, pushing himself to his feet with the rest of the group. "That's… strange." His eyebrows furrowed.

Laphicet asked curiously, "Leo? You and Velvet knew each other back before the Advent, right? So, does that mean you know this area as well?"

Rokurou commented, "Yeah, what's the story behind that? Were you guys from the same town?"

Leo nodded. "In a manner of speaking. I wound up in Aball during my travels and ended up befriending this moody ball of happiness." He gestured at a scoffing Velvet. "She was a lot less… uh, fanged back then, shall we say."

The daemon in question shot back, "And you were just as much of a wimp back then."

Leo waved her off. "Anyways," he turned back to Rokurou, "I lived in Aball for a few months. I left before it all… went south." He finished on a low note.

Rokurou blinked. "I… see." His gaze jumped between Leo and Velvet. "I suppose the two of you would know plenty about the area, then."

"Yeah…" Leo nodded absently as he looked around at the surrounding town. He gazed at the carefree villagers bartering in the central market on the other side of the plaza. He watched as the cats chased each other happily through the streets. He listened as the cawing of the seagulls mixed with the roaring of the sea waves.

"But really though… You'd think  _something_ would've changed around here in all that time…" Leo muttered.

The group stood there in silence for a bit in contemplation, listening to the sound of the sea breeze and the creaking of the overhead skylines.

"Bien." Squeak. Squeak.

"Bien." Squeak. Squeak.

Everyone blinked as a sound slowly began to creep up behind them. They turned around to face the staircase they had just come from.

"BIEN." Squeak… Squeak.

"M-miss… M-Miss Magilou… I… I can't climb any further!" The voice of an out-of-breath and utterly miserable Bienfu moaned to his cruel master.

"Now now, Bienfu. Think of the food! Think of how horrible it would be if you didn't eat tonight! Come on, my dear malak; I believe in you!" Came the mockingly enthusiastic voice of a certain sadist.

"Bieeheheeen…" Squeak... Squeak… Squeak… SQUEAK.

Everyone watched as Bienfu climbed that last step onto the plaza before utterly collapsing in a puddle with a final dejected squeak.

"I'm… so…  _tired_ …" He moaned.

Magilou hummed happily as she strolled up the last few steps behind him, casually stepping over the exhausted body of her malak. "Huh! What a nice workout!" She commented, stretching her arms like a cat.

Leo deadpanned. "I swear. She derives her energy from Bienfu's suffering."

Hawk shuddered.

Magilou noticed the rest of the group staring at her. "So! Shall we?" She grinned evilly. "I'm sure there's still plenty more stairs to go!"

Bienfu moaned wordlessly.

Velvet shook her head in exasperation. "Alright. Let's get going." She turned around back towards the main square and walked off. The rest of the group followed in her footsteps.

Suddenly, she froze dead in her tracks, her eyes wide and emotional. Her gaze whipped sharply to the side where two locals stood chatting amicably about something Leo's human hearing couldn't discern.

"What? What?!" He asked the therion urgently.

Velvet was lost for words. She blinked hard in astonishment. She exhaled quietly under her breath; so quietly Leo almost missed the name she muttered.

"Niko… she… she's alive?!"

His heart stopped.

* * *

"This… This can't… This isn't right…"

Velvet's disturbed muttering continued as she stumbled robotically forwards through the Morgana woods, the rest of the group trailing after her in worry towards the town of Aball. A town which, according to the townsfolk of Taliesin, hadn't been destroyed after all.

All around them, the trees were turning orange. Crickets chirped in the dying light next to the babbling brooks that ran through the forest. The shadows of the trees grew longer by the minute, the sun setting over the distant tree line.

Fall had arrived once more. It would be a full 3 years since the Advent. A full 3 years since Leo had come back to Aball and seen the devastation for himself.

His eyes were hard as he watched friend falling apart before them. His lips were pressed in a firm line as he followed the group.

His thoughts echoed Velvet's. This wasn't right. None of it was.

"Look! I see a village!" Laphicet's call broke the tense silence, snapping all heads in the direction he was pointing, where a rustic, familiar wall was standing.

 _Standing._  Last time Leo had seen that wall, he had stepped over its rotten remains.

There was nothing about this that felt right.

Abruptly, Velvet's head twitched as her ears registered something. Suddenly, she broke into an desperate sprint in the opposite direction, away from the village.

"Velvet!" Leo cursed and ran after her, the rest of the group hot on his heels.

"Where the hell is she going?!" Eizen ground out.

"Who the hell knows?!" Rokurou yelled.

It took all of the group's effort to keep up with the therion's frantic pace. Eventually they made it to a clearing in the forest.

"NIKO!"

Leo's blood ran cold as Velvet's yell registered. His eyes zeroed in on the motionless form lying on the forest floor, her body covered in orange fallen leaves. Niko.

And the massive winged daemon hungrily approaching her unconscious form.

Cursing, Leo whipped out his rifle. A click announced the disengaging of the safety. Praying Velvet would hear him in her frantic mental state, Leo roared, "Velvet! Crossfire right! Two!"

Thankfully, instincts won over desperation and the woman dove out of the way, giving Leo a clean shot at the armored bug daemon.

CRACK-CAK!

CRACK-CAK!

The two piercing rounds flew true and struck the daemon twice; one in the wing joint, and the other in the leg. With a trill of agony, the bug daemon collapsed forward, falling from its previous trajectory towards the unconscious villager and plowed into the dirt in a massive plume of smoke.

Not wasting any time, Velvet charged headfirst into the dirt cloud, unsheathing her blade and daemon arm. Her form vanished into the dust.

Just as the rest of the group neared the fading cloud of dust, they were stopped in their tracks as Velvet uttered a ferocious roar and used her daemon claw to hurl the giant daemon away from her childhood friend and into a nearby tree at the edge of the clearing.

The daemon crashed straight through the tree as if it were rotten and landed awkwardly on the other side, whimpering over its numerous broken wings.

Leo took the opportunity to finish it off.

CRACK-CAK!

CRACK-CAK!

Two more piercing rounds landed right in the brain of the daemon. With a shudder, the monster went limp, its head thumping unceremoniously onto the floor, oozing blood out of the entry wounds.

Everyone stopped to catch their breath.

"Whew! I'm glad we were here!" Magilou breathed sarcastically.

Rokurou huffed. "Seriously. What a let-down." He looked at Velvet with a grin. "You two really went to town; nice job, guys!"

He blinked. "Guys?"

Velvet and Leo weren't looking at him. They weren't paying any mind to anything but the groaning form on the forest floor. A ghost from the past.

"Uh… Ugh…"

A ghost from the past who just sat up and opened her eyes. It was her. Niko. There was no denying it. She was alive…

She was, wasn't she?

Niko's eyes flew to the woman standing directly in front of her with shock.

"V… Velvet?!" She gasped, scrambling to her feet.

Velvet's fists clenched. "What is this?!" She demanded in a shaky voice, unsheathing her sword and pointing it directly at her childhood friend's neck. "How the hell are you alive?!"

Leo's eyes didn't leave Niko's.

The villager replied with equal ferocity to Velvet's demand, "I could ask you the same question! Where the hell have you been this whole time?!"

The naked blade didn't seem to faze her at all.

"You just up and disappeared! Everyone thinks that you were eaten by a daemon…" She took a shaky breath. "But I knew it couldn't be true…" She met Velvet's gaze warmly. "You're too strong to let some crummy daemon take you down!"

Velvet's mouth opened, but nothing came out.

"You're… alive…" Niko breathed, stepping forwards in disbelief.

Abruptly, with a cry, Niko ran forwards with two arms extended, dodging the wavering sword and getting inside the therion's guard and hugging her tightly, as if she never wanted to let go ever again.

Her sobs rang out throughout the clearing. Velvet could do nothing more but hesitantly reciprocate the hug.

Leo watched the scene with hard eyes.

As the two long-lost friends embraced, he silently turned his back towards the scene.

On his way out of the clearing, he met Magilou's sober eyes quietly. In a rare display of seriousness, the witch nodded at his silent request.

Quietly, the two slipped away.

Their conversation on dreams would continue.

* * *

Velvet, Laphicet, Eleanor, Magilou, and Leo walked silently into the warm house.

A fire was burning merrily in the fireplace, heating up the room in contrast to the chilly night that had fallen outside. Everything was as she remembered.

The dishes were all stacked nicely and neatly, ready for the next meal. The stores in the attic were plentiful, ready to last the winter. The dinner table was pristine, evidently having been carefully wiped down recently. Some old boots were lying next to the front door, ready to be used in case of a rainy day.

"I won't…" Velvet breathed.

Her ragged breath fell upon the sleeping form of her beloved brother, tucked away underneath his covers.

"I won't…" She repeated, leaning over her Laphi.

Her bandaged arm fell down, reaching for a past she so longed to bring back.

"…Be deceived… by this…"

A stray bandage fell on her brother's face. Her body shook with emotion; disbelief, denial, anger, and doubt.

Her hand touched Laphi's cheek.

She gasped, tears falling from her eyes.

"Laphi…"

She sucked in a deep breath.

"You're… warm…"

The therion slumped over her brother's form, crying tears of relief.

"Laphi… You're really… alive…" She sobbed, cradling his hands.

Leaning on the inside wall of Laphi's old room, Leo's lips met in a bittersweet smile.

Outside, the leaves fell quietly in the dark.


	37. C35 - Dream

**Chapter 35 – Dream.**

"To think Velvet would've run into you out there in the big wide world!" Niko beamed. "I've gotta say it, Leo. Thanks for having her back!"

Velvet let out an affronted scoff. "I don't need anyone to watch my back." She waved a hand. "If anything, I have the insufferable task of watching his 24/7."

Leo hmphed. "Come on. I help, sometimes."

Velvet hummed. "Not really."

"Hey! I do!"

Niko laughed at the man's pout. "You haven't changed much, have you Leo?"

Leo raised an eyebrow at the woman. "Well, you sure have." He pointed out. "For one, I can actually be in your presence without you drooling over me for whatever reason."

Velvet sighed in mock relief. "And thank all that is holy for that."

Niko shrugged. "What can I say? I outgrew that little phase." Her eyes glinted greedily. "I've got my own  _personal_  hunk with  _my_ name on him." She clapped her hands together salaciously.

Leo shuddered.

Velvet wasn't fazed. "Oh yeah! We heard about him in Taliesin. The veterinarian, right?" She smiled brightly. "Now that I'm back, you can be free to marry him! Although I'm not sure why you held yourself back on my account in the first place…"

"Nonsense!" Niko was adamant. "I was only doing what is expected of a best friend!" She puffed her chest up. "I'm just glad I could serve you, Great Velvet!"

"Stop it!" Velvet laughed, swatting at her best friend's stupid pose. "Just shut up and get the vegetables!"

The girl saluted in response. "Yes ma'am! Together, we shall make Laphi the greatest prickleboar stew ever! He'll wake up in no time with the two of us on the case!"

Velvet smiled hopefully. "Yeah. Definitely!"

Abruptly, Niko leapt up in surprise. "Oh right! Velvet! Before we do that though, there's something I  _need_  to show you!" She pounced forward, capturing Velvet's hands and tugging at her fiercely.

"Wha-what?! Niko!" Velvet blinked at the girl's laughable attempts to tug her forwards.

Niko pouted, "Come on! I've gotta show you a new recipe I made! I've got one stored back home!"

Suddenly, she remembered the rest of the people standing there. Niko grinned sheepishly, "Uh, sorry you guys, but I only have one dish and…"

Leo shook his head quickly. "Don't mind us, we've got plenty of quiche already from this one." He grinningly poked Velvet to her displeasure. "You two go and have fun. Come back over at around noon and we can go prickleboar hunting. There aren't that many boars out at sunrise anyways."

Velvet looked uncertain for a heartbeat before Niko tugged at her harshly again.

"Alright! Come on Velvet, you heard them!" Niko grinned. "We'll be back before you know it!"

The therion nodded. "Alright, alright." She swatted at Niko. "I  _do_ remember the way back to your house, you know. You don't have to drag me there."

Niko pouted as they walked off. "Oh really?! I thought you'd forgotten everything, including the face of your old bestie."

Velvet chuckled lightly in response. "How could I forget you? Your dogs were always the cutest things."

"Hey! What about me?!"

A warm laugh. "I'm just kidding, Niko."

Niko stuck just out her tongue in response.

Leo had a smile on his face as he watched the two banter away, headed towards Niko's house on the other side of the village of Aball.

The village that was completely intact with not a single sign of a daemon invasion whatsoever.

A chill morning mist was in the air, wreathing the town in a pleasant chill. All around the village, the sound of insects and birds added to the tranquil ambiance of the village. The tranquil frontier village was tranquil once more.

For now.

"Leo?" The man looked down to see an anxious Laphicet watching Velvet walk off. "Is it… really okay to let Velvet be on her own?"

Eleanor added, "It might be dangerous if this is all an illusion! Who knows when the enemy might try and take advantage of her current mental state!"

Leo raised an eyebrow. "Her current mental state… which can be defined as 'happy?'"

Eleanor faltered, "W-well…" Her eyes softened. "I guess it's true." She admitted. "Velvet is smiling… a  _lot_ more right now. More than I've ever seen her before, actually."

Laphicet nodded soberly. "Yeah… It's like she's a different person."

Leo's gaze was distant. "Just let her be herself, would you? Just for now at least…" He whispered.

"Huh?" Laphicet cocked his head.

"Bliss is bliss," Magilou commented dryly, "no matter what flavor it is, I suppose."

Eleanor irritably asked, "And just what are you talking about?"

Magilou shrugged. "Ah, don't mind me. I'm just speaking nonsense."

Leo scoffed, adding, "Yeah. She's an insane cuckoo witch-wannabe, haven't you noticed?"

"Yep! That's me." Magilou quipped sarcastically. "O'l crazy beans!" She smiled evilly. "One could even go so far as to say I go through life daydreaming."

Leo glared back at her in response.

Laphicet was completely lost. "Uh… guys?"

Eleanor sighed. "Forget about it, Laphicet. I think Magilou's rubbing off on Leo."

Leo shook his head. "Bah, forget about all that."

He perked up as an idea abruptly popped into his head. "Say, since we have a bit of time, how about we drop in on the inn where I stayed at?"

Laphicet cocked his head. "You stayed in an inn?"

"Well yeah." Leo blinked. "Where else would I sleep? The forest?"

"O-oh, well, it's just I thought that maybe Velvet would've let you sleep in her house."

" _LAPHICET_!" Eleanor gasped. "How could you say such a thing?!" She demanded.

"Wh-what?!" The poor young malak started at Eleanor's outburst.

Magilou clicked her tongue in disappointment. "Tsk. Tsk. How could you suggest such a thing? A 25-year-old man stranger not related by blood sleeping in the same house as an underage woman? Why, the whole town would be in an uproar."

"But… don't  _we_ sleep together when we travel?" Laphicet tried nervously.

Leo shook his head humorously. "Nah, Laphicet. It's different with households. There's a certain… set of unwritten rules concerning them." He shrugged helplessly. "You can have Velvet explain it to you when you're older."

Laphicet grumbled sourly, "Treating me like a little kid again…" The malak shook his head. "Fine. I will."

Eleanor shook her head in exasperation. "I fear for your education, Laphicet."

Magilou grinned happily. "Nonsense! There's no better way to be taught the ways of the world than by daemons, malakhim, and traitorous exorcists!"

Eleanor just glared sourly back at her in response.

Leo waved his hand. "Come on." He prompted.

The three of them walked through the tranquil village as the sun rose steadily upwards.

* * *

"Leo! You're alive!" The familiar booming roar greeted Leo as he and the rest of the detachment of the group stepped into the inn.

He grinned in response. "Drake!"

The bear-like innkeeper greeted the man with a raucous, bone-crushing hug. "You little bastard!" He cursed, grinning ear to ear. "You told me you'd never come back to Aball ever again when you left!" He punctuated his statement with a rough shake.

Leo coughed as he wheezed for breath, patting the man's back in an appeasing motion. "Easy there, buddy. And I believe I said that I'd 'most likely' never come back to Aball that day." He grinned lopsidedly. "Figures that such dense vocabulary would slip right through your rock you call a brain."

Drake bellowed a laugh, slapping Leo as he let him go, to the man's blessed relief. The innkeeper raised a suggestive eyebrow. "It's been a long damn time. Still having trouble with the ladies?"

Leo blinked. "Ladies? What ladies?"

Drake broke into snickers. "The pigs of course! Don't tell me you've forgotten about your little Aball fan club!" His snickers blew up into a full-blown laugh.

Leo groaned. "Thanks to you I've remembered them. Are those buggers still up and kicking after all these years?"

Drake nodded. "Just like you eh?" He gave the other man another grinning slap on the back.

Leo winced. "Agh! Not if you keep hitting me like that!" He rubbed his sore back and changed the subject. "So. How's the inn?" He asked, looking around the familiar building.

Everything was as he remembered. The walls were all well-kept, the rugs all swept clean and pruned of dirt. In the corner, Drake's old grandfather clock ticked happily, as if nothing had ever happened to it.

The man shrugged, leaning back comfortably onto the counter of the lobby. "We're doing just as swell as ever. Although I'm afraid your old room is taken right now. Some hot-shot hunters from Taliesin came over just the other day and booked half the damn inn." He shrugged. "Not that I'm complaining about the income." He grinned. "Nor is my wife."

Leo gave the man a knowing smirk. "Still hankering for prickleboar meat?"

"Ravenous, actually. Insatiable, even." Drake shot back. He assuaged Leo, "But don't worry. You won't have to bag us anything this time around. My wife's already found a nice hunky hunter to grace her with some meat." His face soured dramatically.

Leo chuckled, patting his friend on the shoulder. "It's fine, Drake. I'm sure she only has eyes for you." He faltered. "…That is if you promise her more meat than the other guy." He grinned sheepishly.

Drake glared dangerously at the man. "Don't even joke about that."

Leo waved both hands disarmingly. "Kidding! Kidding!"

Suddenly, a call came up from a different room in the inn. "Papa! The tea's boiling! It's time to drink!"

Drake sighed, meeting Leo's knowing gaze. "Sorry buddy." He apologized helplessly. "I'd stay to chat, but you know how the little devils are."

The smaller man waved him off dismissively. "Nah, don't worry about it 'papa.'" He grinned. "Little children just need attention, of course."

"Naturally." The innkeeper grinned, nudging Leo suggestively. "Which is why  _you_ need to find yourself a woman, mate. A little boy like you needs someone to take care of yourself." Roaring with laughter, Drake waved farewell as he sauntered off, leaving a sputtering Leo in the lobby.

Despite himself, Leo found himself grinning happily as he listened to Drake's trademark roar as he entered his section of the inn, before being promptly shushed by one of his daughters for disrupting the tea party. He shook his head fondly.

"He seems like… quite the fellow." Eleanor commented as she, Laphicet, and Magilou walked into the lobby, having stood outside and spectated the conversation between the two close friends.

Magilou shuddered. "No kidding! I didn't even want to go inside the same room as that giant! The way Leo's bones cracked when he hugged him…" She imitated a cracking noise with her tongue.

Laphicet winced at the noise, looking around. "This is where you stayed while you were in Aball, Leo?" He asked curiously.

"Yep." Leo confirmed. "I ended up getting quite close with Drake and his family." A nostalgic smile appeared on his face. "They let me stay basically for free. It was really, really kind of them."

Eleanor smiled happily. "Yes… I can't say I ever saw you as close to another exorcist when you were in the Abbey with me."

Magilou leaned forward onto the lobby desk, casually flipping through the ledgers and pretending to read them upside-down. "…Quite nice, isn't it?" She breathed quietly. "To remember the past."

Leo closed his eyes and just let his auditory senses surround and envelop him for a moment. The chuckling and giggling behind Drake's family's door. The low murmur of the hunters in their rooms. The crackling of the fireplace. The ticking of the clock.

It was just like he remembered.

"…Yeah." He breathed softly.

Laphicet's eyes landed on the machine in the corner. "Oh! Wow!" His eyes budged as he ran over to the grandfather clock. "No way! I didn't expect to find something like this here!"

Eleanor blinked, following him over to the machine. "What is it Laphicet?" She blinked, staring at the clock in befuddlement. "Is this a… clock?"

Magilou squealed dramatically, "Ahh! Witchcraft! Burn the heretical box of evil!"

Leo rolled his eyes and stepped up to the clock, pointing to the display benefit. "This here is a grandfather clock. This particular design is around a decade old, but still tells the time pretty well." He shrugged. "Well, to some extent. It always needs to be fixed once every half year or so for one reason or another."

Laphicet's eyes were wide. "Still, that's amazing! How does it run?!"

Leo's finger ran down to the ticking arm. "This is a pendulum."

Eleanor blinked. "Like Zaveid's weapon?"

The man shrugged. "I guess. But used to a more practical extent." He gestured broadly. "Still, given everything, the machine runs really well, if I do say so myself." He grinned proudly.

Laphicet blinked as he registered the man's implication. "Wait, you made this?!" He gazed up at the man in awe.

Leo shook his head. "Nah, I just fixed it." He pointed a finger over to Drake's room. "That guy had no idea how to work with clockwork tools and hiring a specialist would've cost tens of thousands of gald, so…" He shrugged. "It's been working pretty well so far ever since I fixed it, apparently. Hasn't broken down in three years." He grinned.

"Impressive." Eleanor blinked. "But wait. Didn't you just say that the clock breaks over the course of months?" She asked in confusion.

Leo's eyes fell onto the ticking clock. His eyes grew distant, the ticking of the clock seemingly getting louder.

"Yeah. I did, didn't I?" He mumbled.

Eleanor's brow furrowed at his response.

Abruptly, he shook his head. "Anyways, that's pretty much all there is to it. Come on." He gestured forward. "Let's get going, guys. Velvet should be waiting by the main square by now."

Laphicet nodded. "Alright."

The group made their way out the door, Laphicet and Eleanor leaving first. The door shut firmly behind the two of them. Leo made to follow.

"…The ticking of a clock that should've stopped long ago."

Magilou's quiet commentary broke the silence.

"Huh?" Leo stopped in his tracks and glanced over in surprise. The witch evidently hadn't moved from her spot, staring pensively at the ticking clock.

"If you keep on having to repair a broken machine just to have it run for a little bit longer, is it worth it really, in the end?" She asked quietly. "Wouldn't it be better to just… let the machine lie? It would be so,  _so_  much easier that way."

The ticking of Drake's clock sang in the silence of the lobby.

Leo took the question seriously.

"…Yeah." He muttered quietly. "…I guess I was never the one to take the easy route." His eyes narrowed. "On the contrary, I seem to love making things as tough as possible on myself, despite everything I try to do otherwise."

Magilou let out a light scoff. "Heh. Clearly."

With that, the witch spun around and faced the man with a smile. "Well then. Let us be off!" She waved vaguely in the direction of the clock. "This constant ticking is grating on my nerves."

"Oh, so you know how it feels to have you around in the group." Leo observed wryly.

Magilou sang uncaringly in a high pitch as she sauntered out the front door. "Magickazam!"

"Never change, Magilou." Leo shook his head in exasperation before following and stepping out the door and into the sunlight. Before he left for good however, he took one last look around the warm lobby. His eyes were filled with emotion.

He let out a regretful sigh and shut the door firmly behind himself.

The ticking of the clock kept going strong in the now empty room.

* * *

"Velvet! Crossfire right!"

"You got it!"

CRACK!

A flock of birds took off in panic as the sharp report of live fire echoed throughout the Morgana woods. Down under the light canopy, a prickleboar squealed in pain as a bullet entered and exited its body right in center mass.

Besides it, two other prickleboars snarled as they witnessed the demise of one of their swine members. They charged directly at the hunters whom had shattered their peaceful day.

Velvet's sword fell precisely, easily parrying the charge of the first boar's tusks before whistling around and sliding effortlessly into the second boar's belly as it pounded.

With a roar, the therion threw the impaled boar off her sword and spun around, her boot kicking up dirt as it left the ground and travelled directly into the flank of the other boar as it tried to charge again.

Both boars landed in the dirt, tumbling away from the hunter, dead. The calm returned to the forest after the brief lapse of chaos.

Leo exhaled, shifting out of firing stance. "Well. That was easy." He commented dryly.

Velvet reached in her pack to pull out a few nets, her eyes on the felled prickleboar. "This should be more than enough meat to last us a week, if not longer." She smiled brightly. "Looks like Laphi will be eating like a king tonight."

"No kidding." Leo stepped out from his position at the edge of the clearing and joined her, taking an offered net and proceeding to work on the boar he had shot.

He grunted, "And that's not counting whatever meat the others will manage to bring home." He examined the entry wound on the boar. "We should take these guys and head on back to town now."

Velvet nodded, her fingers moving naturally to secure the prickleboar to the net. "Of course." Her eyes drifted to the sun high in the sky. The bright yellow sunlight bathed her features as she let out a breath, relaxing.

"…Just like old times." She breathed softly.

Leo stopped working, staring at Velvet as she closed her eyes, sighing contently.

All around them, the leaves rustled gently as a soft breeze blew overhead. Birds chirped as they returned to their nests dotted among the trees. The crisp clicking of leaves falling onto the forest floor surrounded them.

His face twisted into a smile as he saw the alien softness in Velvet's face. A shine had returned to her being that he thought was lost forever.

He didn't want to say anything in response. For fear of breaking the moment. A point in time that felt as if it were made of fragile glass.

The wind continued to blow all around them.

Leo opened his mouth and uttered softly, "It is. It's good to remember the things… that have been forgotten…" He trailed off.

Velvet's eyes blinked open and she glanced over at her friend in confusion. "…What are you talking about, Leo?"

He shook his head, instead raising his gaze towards the falling leaves. "It's nothing. Don't worry about it." He insisted quietly.

Velvet shrugged. "Alright." She returned back to work on the prickleboar.

The two of them fell quiet, simply working cathartically in the shade of the trees in an old ritual.

Velvet broke the silence. "Say, Leo? Could I possibly ask you a favor?"

Leo looked up at the soft voice. "Obviously." He replied amicably. "What is it?"

Surprisingly, she looked rather embarrassed with what she was about to ask. "Well, it's just…" Velvet shook her head. "I was wondering if you could possibly talk to Laphi in his room after dinner?" She looked away awkwardly. "I know it sounds really stupid but…" She trailed off.

Leo blinked. Realization dawned abruptly. He smiled softly. "Maybe if I talk loud enough, I could convince him to wake up, and continue our nuanced nautical decision where we left off, huh?"

Velvet looked at him in surprise. "Yeah… That's what I was thinking." She agreed.

"Of course, I would. You don't have to ask me for that." He smiled, a hint of sadness in his eyes. "He's my friend, of course."

The therion chuckled softly. "To think for once I'm actually asking you to  _start_ talking nonsense with that kid."

"Nonsense!? How dare you!" Leo yelled in mock affront. "I'll have you know that without the vast nautical networks connecting our lands, our civilization would devolve into chaos! Anarchy! Oblivion!" He roared.

Velvet rolled her eyes. "Save it for Laphi." She remarked dryly. "I don't wanna hear it, Eizen."

"Oh, that hurts." Leo groaned, clutching his chest. He abruptly stilled, his eyes narrowing into slits and clutched his wrist.

His voice ran ragged and deep. "I'll have you know that such information is crucial to the continued advancement of human civilization. We can only hope to one day be as advanced as the long-lost Asgardians of old." Stars shone in his eyes. "To think! Such an assertive yet not ostentatious race! Oh, how I would long to live in such an age!" He proclaimed.

Thwack!

"Gah!" Leo winced, rubbing the bump the thrown stick had left on his head, glaring at the smirking therion across the clearing.

Velvet smirked in satisfaction, lowering the hand that had thrown the stick. "Just shut up and get back to work before the sun goes down." She ordered in mock exasperation.

"Sadist…" Leo muttered as he followed the woman's orders, a smile on his face belying his words. He muttered mockingly, "Have you no appreciation for the wonders of the world?"

"Not particularly." Velvet huffed. "Like I said, save the lectures for Laphi. Spare me your gibberish."

"Hmph!" He grunted, keeping his voice dark. "You should know, I'm the reaper." Leo picked out a coin from his pouch and flipped it in the air, seeking to imitate Eizen. And promptly lost it in the bright sunlight.

The coin came right back down through the sunlight to bounce smack off his nose.

"Agh! Goddamnit! Son of a-" Leo wined in a dramatically higher pitch as he began rubbing his nose in pain.

Up on his perch on top of one of the larger trees, Hawk barked out something that could only be described as howling laughter down at the idiotic man.

Leo glared up at the gleeful malak. "Shut it, you. Don't say a word." He growled.

Hawk gave his master a pointed look.

"…Yes, I know you can't talk. So, what?"

A roll of the eyes.

"Don't give me that! Don't make me come up there, mister!"

A taunting yip.

"…Alright that's it! Come here you little mutt!"

Velvet just shook her head with a smile as Leo scrambled clumsily up the tree before falling off with a groan, much to the amusement of his malak.

"…Same as ever." She muttered to herself.

Her smile widened as another breeze tickled her skin and played with her hair.

It was all…

Just so pleasant.

* * *

The sun was setting once more over the tranquil village of Aball. Leo shivered as a stray breeze made its way into his coat.

Up on top of the Crowe household, the winds were as strong as ever. But on the other hand, the view was just as calming. Far off in the distance, the golden globe was drifting sedately to the horizon, mixing with the sea of orange trees. All around him the crickets were beginning their nightly choir, announcing the presence of dusk to all.

Leo's smile had faded the moment he had stepped alone onto the roof.

He sighed, glancing over to his left to an empty patch of roof. Despite how similar it was to that night, three years ago, it wasn't the same. None of it was… the same.

There was no Laphi here to explain why he was leaving Aball. There was knowledge in his head that he just could not forget, nor ignore. This world had changed, utterly and completely. And he had changed with it, for better or for worse.

He shook his head in disbelief.

To think back then, he was happy abandoning everyone he knew just because he didn't want to get hurt. To think he'd left Laphi and Velvet, when they'd been perfectly happy.

What… a waste.

He'd changed his perspectives since then, that was for sure. He wasn't running away from what he wanted anymore. On the contrary, he was sticking to his guns, hard and true.

He blinked. His fists clenched.

For now, at least.

Almost unconsciously, the man sent a thought through that artificial circuit in his brain. It had been so long since the last time he had checked. Ever since he had decided to go with Velvet, in fact…

97.21%.

Leo let out a sigh. It was almost time. The sun was setting on him, as well, it would seem.

It would seem, that just like Velvet, he was living in a dream. One that would have to end, sooner than later.

Suddenly, his ears picked up raised voices down at the front yard below.

"And if I try to stop you… You'll insist, I presume."

"VELVET! NO!"

His eyes widened as he saw Velvet facing off against Rokurou and Eizen, having extended her daemon claw… in front a terrified Niko. He quickly jerked his head, banishing the disruptive augmented reality box from his vision.

There would be time to contemplate that later.

Niko's startled scream of terror rose the hairs on the back of Leo's neck. His eyes were wide as he watched Eizen and Rokurou leave the rest of the group to deal with Velvet's horrified childhood friend.

Niko's shaky voice broke the silence. "Y-Your hand… it's…" Her eyes could barely move towards the terrifying appendage. The monstrous claw demarcating her old friend as a daemon.

Velvet's voice was cold and familiar. "As you can see… I'm a daemon." She admitted matter-of-factly. "Three years ago… I was the one who attacked this village and-"

"I don't want to hear it!" Leo started as Niko's cry broke through the yard, stopping Velvet's explanation in her tracks. "Daemon… or no daemon…" Niko shook her head determinedly, forcing herself to look Velvet in the eye and not at her claw. "You're still you!" She stated resolutely.

Leo's lips were pressed in a thin line. He glanced at his friend, who seemed to be frozen in surprise.

"Okay! So… you're scary! …I'll get used to it!" Niko promised. She took a tentative step forward. "I… promise. I'll keep it a secret." She nodded, gaining confidence and began walking towards her old friend. She let out in a soft voice, "Let's just live here…" She stopped in front of Velvet and hesitantly touched the alien, monstrous hand of her old friend. "Let's just live here, in the village, like we used to. Okay?" She pleaded. She gripped the claw with both hands and squeezed acceptingly.

"You… me… and everyone else…"

Velvet's form was shaking in emotion. "N…Niko…" She breathed, her voice once again soft and tender as she shakily touched her friend's hands on top of her claw. There were no words left to be said.

Up on the roof, Leo leaned back with a quiet huff.

How… shallow.

His heavy gaze turned back upwards, towards the horizon.

But the sun had already set, leaving an empty darkness in its wake.

* * *

Outside, the crickets chirped in the darkness. Inside, a fire burned merrily in the hearth, illuminating the Crowe living room in a warm glow. The smell of the freshly cooked dinner hung in the air.

It was all too familiar. All too sweet.

BLECH.

"Ah! That was too good!" Leo breathed.

WHACK!

"ARGH! What the hell Eleanor?!"

The woman huffed, setting the soiled soup ladle down on the table. "Have you ever heard of table manners you absolute animal?! Cover your mouth, or at least say 'excuse me!'"

Leo glared back, rubbing the bump on his head. "Excuse me for being alive!" He whipped his head towards the woman picking up the soiled dishes. "Isn't that right, Velvet?"

The woman rolled her eyes as she added the soup ladle to the stack of dishes she was cradling in her arms. "Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if you'd died somewhere along the way." She shrugged. "You're just that forgettable."

Magilou chuckled. "Ah, the fear of obscurity. How quaint."

Velvet glared at her in response. "And you're even more useless."

"Hey! That's not fair!"

Leo just pouted, rubbing his bump. "Vixens. The lot of you."

Laphicet laughed, looking away from his current task of giving Hawk a scratch on the head to give Leo a sympathetic grin instead. "It's alright Leo. At least you got to have some of Velvet's delicious Prickleboar Stew tonight! There's no way we could've had access to such ingredients on the Van Eltia!"

"Yeah. I feel real thankful alright." Leo muttered, this time politely covering his mouth as he burped again. "Excuse me." He drawled loudly.

Eleanor looked on approvingly.

Hawk nudged Laphicet indignantly. The malak laughed and turned back to scratching the malak. "Alright, alright Hawk! Here you go, good boy!" He handed the wolf a treat which was promptly snatched out of his hands with a fervor.

"Hey!" Velvet called from across the house in the kitchen. "Don't get crumbs all over the floor! I just mopped!"

Laphicet winced. "O-of course, we won't!" He called overly loudly. He exchanged a wide-eyed look with Hawk.

Leo chuckled as he watched as the two malaks quickly scrambled around in a quiet panic, picking up every single crumb regardless of the size in fear of the therion washing dishes across the room. "Anyways, you were saying, Magilou?" He perched his head on top of twined hands and looked at the witch across the empty table.

"Ah yes. As I was saying," her eyes darkened, and she raised a fist dramatically, "there I was in the dungeon, with no way out. Trapped! A rat in a cage!"

Eleanor's eyes narrowed. "And… you said that a troll had sprung a trap on you?"

Magilou languished, "Alas such is the misfortune one risks when one ventures into the deep, dark unknown!" She put a hand on her chest. "Such a noble expedition entails the most frightening of trials, naturally."

Leo deadpanned, "Didn't you say something about a rumored treasure?"

"Not now dear sir, the storyteller is speaking!" Magilou sang to Leo's irritation. "Anyways, There I was in that room, stone wall all around me!" She waved both arms in separate directions, encircling herself. "Even the door I had been locked out of couldn't be discerned, its stone material blending in seamlessly with the other stones in the walls! It was a prison!" She slumped dramatically. "I thought, 'This is it, Magilou! This is how it ends! You'd better start thinking about food rations!'"

Eleanor looked worried. "How much food did you have packed?"

Magilou smiled wryly. "I had Bienfu."

"O-oh."

Leo facepalmed. "So," he drawled, "How did you escape?"

Magilou blinked at him owlishly. "How do you know I  _did_  escape? I haven't told the story yet!"

"You're  _clearly_ still alive!" Leo exclaimed, indicating the sly witch lounging in the wooden dinner chair.

Magilou shrugged. "So?"

"…" Leo flat out stopped working for a second, his mouth opening and closing soundlessly.

Eleanor sighed. "Just… let it go, Leo."

Magilou went on genially, "I stayed in that room for three days and three nights, searching each and every face of rock for some sort of way out!" Her eyes darkened. "A hidden switch, a pressure plate, anything to save my wretched soul!" She slumped. "But alas, none could be fo-"

"Wait." Leo held up a hand. "How could you count the number of days and nights if you were stuck inside-?"

Magilou silenced the man with a fierce glare. "FOUND, and then," she cleared her throat, getting herself back into the rhythm of the story, "One day, I heard a something through the walls. A repeating, monotonous sound."

Despite himself, Leo found himself leaning forward in his chair.

Magilou raised a hand theatrically to her ear. "It went like this…" She closed her eyes and imitated, "Thump. Thump. Thump."

Eleanor blinked. "Thumps?"

"Thumps." Magilou agreed. "It was coming from a single corner of the room." She spoke quietly, her pitch rising. "I crawled to the corner, hoping, beyond hope, that salvation was at hand." She rose slowly in her chair, her back straightening. "And then I realized, the thumping… was getting… closer." She breathed quietly. "Thump. Thump. Thump."

The two exorcists exchanged a glance. Eleanor asked quietly, "And then?"

Magilou grinned.

"BOOM!" She screamed, leaping to her feet and startling the living daylights out of her audience.

"What the-?!"

"Jesus-!"

Magilou spread her arms wide and exclaimed, "Just like that, the walls EXPLODED in a magnificent plume of smoke! My freedom, given to me by the most  _unexpected_ of beings!"

Eleanor's eyes were wide. "What?! A being?!"

Leo blinked, steadying himself in his chair. "Well?! What was it?!"

Magilou smiled deviously.

"…Find out next time!" She sang.

Leo abruptly lost his balance and tumbled towards the floor, swearing. "MOTHER-!"

Down on the ground Hawk sprinted away in panic, narrowly avoiding being squished as the man impacted hard onto the floor with a groan.

Meanwhile Eleanor sighed, rubbing her temples. "Why did I get a feeling it would end like this?" She asked.

Magilou shrugged happily, "Hey, I can't just give out  _all_ my stories at once. That would just be plain bad for my reputation!"

"You don't have a reputation!" Leo retorted sourly, getting roughly to his feet.

"How rude!" Magilou replied, uncaring. She shrugged. "Eh, an uncultured person such as yourself would never understand the finer things in life. Your loss!" She sang.

Leo dusted off his pants sourly and glared down at the sitting witch. "Oh, buzz off." He blinked as he realized Velvet and Laphicet weren't in the living room anymore. His eyes were drawn through the open door on the other side of the room, where Velvet was tenderly taking care of an unconscious Laphi laying on his bed.

"I'll be right back." He muttered quietly to Eleanor.

Magilou asked lightly, "Are you sure? I was just about to start another story!"

"Oh, shut up." Leo threw back sourly as he trotted away, towards Laphi's room.

His footsteps slowed as he neared the threshold, seeing the strange image of a daemon Velvet caring lovingly for her brother. His eyes were soft as he took in her expression.

"So… this is what your life used to be like before everything happened, huh?" Laphicet's voice made Leo blink. He realized the malak must be inside the room as well.

Velvet turned to the malak with a bright, dreamy smile still on her face. "What's gotten into you?" She asked, kneeling down in front of the malak playfully.

She reached forwards with her bandaged hand and plucked a spot of pudding off Phi's cheek, humming.

"Hmm… Maybe I made the pudding a little too sweet…" She observed absent-mindedly.

Her eyes went wide as she gasped, standing up abruptly.

On the other side of the doorway, Leo let out a soft, sad sigh.

* * *

"Vel…vet." A weak, mewling, heart-wrenchingly familiar voice. "Don't… go…" A shuddering intake of breath. "Stay here… Stay with me…"

In response, a soft, sorrowful voice full of longing.

"I'm sorry, Laphi."

A sigh.

"This isn't your voice… it's mine."

"No, don't… Wait… Velvet, wait… Don't… Don't leave me here!"

The boy's desperate, lonely cries echoed into the night.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town, an old clock continued to count the time ceaselessly.


	38. C36 - Nightmare

**Chapter 36 – Nightmare.**

" _I'm sorry to break it to you, but all I have now are nightmares."_

Somehow, Velvet's obscure words from some random conversation long ago rang clearly in Leo's head as he charged as fast as he could, following the furious daemon as she tore through the dark woods towards the center of Aball.

Tendrils of ominous dark-colored fog reached out towards the group wherever they turned, loathe to lose their grip on their quarry. Above their heads, not a glimpse of the sky could be had; the fog had shielded all from their view, even the heavens.

Velvet growled fiercely and sped up, dashing around another corner. Leo cursed and followed as fast as he could, huffing and puffing.

"Leo! What the hell is going on?!" Eleanor beseeched as she tried her best to keep up with the man. "Why did we leave Velvet's brother back there?!"

"Good morning little exorcist!" Magilou sang cheerfully. "It's time to wake up and smell the bacon!"

"What the hell does that mean?!"

Leo ignored them and focused only on the form charging forwards into the distance. She was the one he was worried about.

"Velvet!"

Rokurou's call greeted Velvet as the she charged into the foggy town center.

Eizen looked over his shoulder calmly, taking in the daemon's determined stride. "There you are."

Velvet didn't spare either of them a glance, instead focusing on the group of villagers who were blocking their path. On her old friend Niko. Her fists clenched. She walked determinedly forwards, towards the future.

There was no going back.

"Velvet, you have to stop your friends." Niko pleaded. "They keep saying they're going to the cape, and they just won't listen."

Drake the innkeeper met the woman's eyes seriously. "The Abbey's forbidden anyone from going inside, Velvet. There'll be hell to pay if anyone breaks the rules."

Velvet looked at the ground, her left fist clenching in emotion.

"I…" She began quietly. "I hate to say it Niko… But I think I'm a terrible person." She whispered. Her voice was almost incredulous.

"I really thought I could have my old life back again, and I could forget everything else." She scoffed softly. "I tried to act like I was doing it for Laphi… but it was all for myself."

Her fists clenched. "But… I can't forget. I shouldn't forget." Her eyes glanced behind her briefly. "Laphi is dead." She declared softly. "He… He was murdered." She breathed. "He was murdered without even knowing why…" She gritted her teeth. "I will never forgive that."

"EVER!"

She lifted her head high. "So. Get out of my way. If you don't…" Her eyes bulged.

"I'll devour you again!"

All around them, the fog began to writhe madly, as if in pain.

Niko stammered quietly, "Velvet… why would you say…" She jerked abnormally to the side, a shroud of malevolence appearing beneath her. "Why…" she trailed off with wide eyes.

Drake's spine let out a sickening crunch as he folded to the side. "This… Velvet… you shouldn't… Aball… your home…"

CHINK. CHINK.

"Is gone."

Everyone blinked and turned to find an intruder pointing a weapon directly at the innkeeper, his eyes cold.

The violently thrashing fog abruptly stilled, instead bubbling like water not quite at its boiling point. Drake blinked, the malevolence engulfing him and the rest of the villagers wavering.

"Leo." Drake breathed. "You… you're my friend, aren't you?" He implored with wide eyes. "Why would you do this? We talked! We laughed! This town is as home for you as it is for us! Why would you-!?"

CRACK!

Drake's eyes were helplessly wide as he gaped at the bleeding hole in his chest, right over his heart.

Leo's eyes were sad as he lowered the rifle. "…Sorry Drake." He sighed. "I just… wanted to remember what it felt like." He cocked the rifle.

A shell fell right onto the pavement, deafeningly loud in the tense silence.

"I knew it wasn't real." He grinned humorlessly. "I suppose… It was just… It was just nice to see you again, old friend." He exhaled tiredly. "…Even if it was only for a little bit." He muttered.

Velvet's eyes were wide. "You." She hissed in betrayal. "You knew?!"

Leo kept his eyes on the villagers. "All of you." He addressed them. "I'll admit the dream was nice while it lasted." He called out.

The fog began to swirl again, thrashing wildly as its latest attempt for prey failed to take hold. The malevolence cloaking the foul imitations of the former villagers resurged savagely.

"I've always been a coward myself." He admitted, slotting another rifle round into the feed with a click. "I've done plenty of things I've come to regret because of it." He shook his head. "But… Looking back is one thing I don't regret. I don't feel bad indulging myself in memories every now and then."

Cascading blonde hair. Warm brown eyes. The hint of a smile playing on her lips.

Leo blinked the image out of his eyes, lining up the sights once more. "I never did properly say goodbye to all of you. I ran away too quickly for that, all those years ago." He grunted. "So here you go."

CRACK.

Drake's lifeless body slumped onto the floor where the malevolence eagerly fed on the illusion, relegating the man into the form of a dead werewolf daemon bleeding heavily from two bullet wounds to the chest.

"…I hope the kids are doing good." Leo wished softly under his breath, cocking his rifle. "Say hi to your wife for me, would ya? Tell her… that I'm sorry for not being there to give her more prickleboar meat." He smiled softly at the dead daemon corpse.

"I'll see you around, Drake." He muttered softly with finality.

With a roar, the malevolence peaked, transforming all the villagers around them into daemons. Niko in particular screamed in anger as she transformed into a harpy daemon.

Velvet's eyes were hard. "…The truth at last." She whispered, taking in the sight of the horde of daemons as they stumbled to their feet, snarling viciously.

"Ohoh."

Leo glanced over his shoulder as a certain pink-hatted woman strolled over to his position, guardians at the ready. "So…" Magilou nodded softly, evidently concluding something.

"I guess we all know what you dream of now, don't we?" She observed.

Leo reloaded his rifle as the snarls grew louder as one. "…Was it that obvious?" He let out a humorless scoff.

"Maybe." The witch shrugged, glancing pointedly at the therion tensely preparing for battle against her old village once more.

"The boundary between dreams and reality… is demarcated solely by one's own heart." Her whisper was silent, meant only for Leo's ears.

Her gaze slid to meet Leo's. "I suppose it's safe to say  _your_ heart, in particular, knows what it wants for sure." She concluded dryly.

"Hell." Leo muttered, shaking his head. "You haven't been paying attention to me at all, have you?"

Magilou shrugged. "Perhaps." Her eyes darkened. "Or perhaps it's  _you_  who's hasn't been paying attention to  _yourself_." She suggested lightly.

Leo blinked in surprise.

"Leo! Magilou! Get over here!" Eizen's yell snapped Leo out of it. He cursed as he realized the daemons were charging as one vicious pack of feral monsters.

"Coming!" He yelled as the two of them ran back over to where the rest of the group were gathered together.

All around them, the fog continued to squirm as if in pain.

* * *

"GET OUT OF MY WAY!"

SHINK.

With a vicious howl, Velvet tore her calcite sword out of the harpy that had imitated her old friend, spraying blood all over herself in the process. The daemon slumped lifelessly to the floor of her town, dead once more.

With the last vestige of the illusion having been crushed out of existence, the illusion broke. The fog blanketing the town abruptly stopped moving, losing all momentum and sliding to a halt.

For a brief moment, the group stared around in confusion at the unnatural fog hovering in the air.

And then all of a sudden, the fog simply disappeared as if a stray gust of wind had picked the moisture out of the air and vaporized it. The spell had been properly broken.

Leaving behind the true Aball in its wake.

Leo's eyes were hard but unsurprised as he looked around the square, taking in the abandoned village in its true state.

"This… this is…" Eleanor stammered, gazing around horrified.

Velvet's spoke without inflection, "Aball. The true Aball." Her eyes roamed emotionlessly over the dilapidated village.

A gust of cold night wind blew through the empty town, rustling the undisturbed piles of leaves gathering in the quiet town. The creaking of an old door on rusted hinges cried out in the distance. The full moon, now unhindered by a cloudless sky, beamed a sad and gloomy light over the dead town.

Leo trotted up silently to the large building off the main plaza. The inn of Aball had seen better days, that was for sure.

The right wing, where Drake's family had lived long ago, had completely caved in on itself. The lobby, while still standing, had a gaping hole where a window once faced out towards the village proper. The entire establishment was overrun with foliage as nature reclaimed what the humans had lost.

He knew for a fact that the clock inside wasn't ticking anymore.

"Leo." Velvet's voice was cold.

There wasn't any need to clarify why she felt betrayed.

He turned to face her in the moonlight, the ruins of the inn at his back. "I knew." He admitted quietly. "I knew the moment we saw Niko alive."

His gaze slid away from his friend, instead wandering around the broken village. "…I never did tell you, did I?" He muttered quietly.

"After the Advent," he explained, "the moment I heard rumors about Aball's destruction, I had to go and see for myself." He faced the broken entrance to the village with distant eyes. "And I did."

He turned to face Velvet. "All of this. I saw it all."

His fists clenched. "I had thought… that you had died. That everyone… had died."

Eleanor gasped. "That's right!" She remembered. "That's why you…!"

Leo nodded. "I joined the Abbey, at least somewhat partially." He met Velvet's hard gaze. "I wanted to kill the monsters who had destroyed the one place I had come to call home in a very,  _very_ long time."

Velvet was silent at the revelation.

"…You asked me that question," she uttered quietly, "when we first met by the Danann Highway."

Leo quoted, "I asked, 'Aball. You didn't, did you?'" He scoffed self-deprecatingly. "What a damn moron I was back then."

"But you were right." Velvet began. She set her jaw. "I was the one who de-"

"Now don't you  _FUCKING_ start with that again, Velvet!"

Leo spun about abruptly, glaring at the surprised therion. He pointed a harsh finger at the surprised woman. " _I_ will be the one who decides who I hate and who I don't.  _I_ will decide who is  _innocent_ and who is  _guilty_.  _I_ will be the one who defines what is  _evil_  in my eyes, Velvet." He growled angrily. "And you can't fucking stop me."

Velvet's fists clenched.

"…You're despicable."

Leo blinked in surprise.

"LOOK AT ALL THIS!" She screamed, gesturing around her. "ALL THESE PEOPLE! THIS VILLAGE! I  _ATE_  THEM ALL!"

She clenched her left hand tightly, popping open the wound on her palm and causing her own blood to drip onto the floor. "All of them… The people I grew up with… The people I treasured… Niko… Drake… Even Drake's poor little girls… I devoured them all up in an instant for my vengeance."

"I am a murderer, Leo." She growled lowly. "But here you are, saying that what, I somehow  _don't_  deserve everything the world throws at me and more?!"

She let out an incredulous laugh. "You're  _disgusting_! Can't you see what I've become?! The people I've killed! The things I've done!" She slapped a hand on her chest. " _I fully_ accept it!" She growled. "I accepted it the moment I became a daemon!" She swiped her right arm in fury.

"SO WHY THE HELL CAN'T YOU?!" She roared in pure frustration.

Leo stared at her, stunned at her ferocity as she heaved with emotion. He had no words when faced with her terrifying conviction.

She refused to see herself as anything other than the monster she had painted herself as. She painted herself on the mirror, refusing to acknowledge the reflection of her human self within. Because her painted image was all she had left. He came to the realization suddenly with an absolutely crushing certainty.

Velvet Crowe was broken inside.

She just didn't know it yet.

Behind him, the ghost of an old ticking clock could be heard.

Eizen abruptly broke the silence. "I need to remind you, Velvet, we're on a schedule. Whoever set that illusion will know that it has been broken by now. We need to get to the therion. Now." He urged.

Velvet roughly shook her head. "You're right. Come on!"

She gave Leo one last disdainful look before turning around and breaking into another run towards the opposite gate. "The shrine's through these woods!"

Leo stood there silently as the rest of the group ran off, the creaking of the derelict buildings his only companion. He turned around and took one more look at the dilapidated inn as his mind whirled with emotions.

Somehow, the old building seemed to welcome him.

* * *

"I killed their owner. I deserve all their hate… and then some."

Leo stepped silently towards the shrine, watching the scene as Velvet subdued a massive two-headed therion with sad eyes and a quiet voice.

"But not now, understand? Once I get my revenge, you can tear me apart if you like. I promise." Velvet promised, leaning in dangerously close to the growling faces of the daemon.

Leo stepped quietly towards the scene before hesitating. After a moment of consideration, his feet instead took him on a different route, towards a collection of sticks near the cliff edge.

"Until then, I'll need your help."

A grotesque squelching announced the reverting of Niko's dogs Orthie and Russ from therion form into their normal bodies. Leo smiled softly as his ears picked up the familiar whining of those cowardly dogs.

In the distance, the group began to converse about a book Laphicet had found in Velvet's house that had since disappeared along with the illusion. Leo paid them no mind and instead stood silently, his expression somber.

A seaward breeze blew past him, making his coat flap quietly and making his gun rattle. All around him, the flowers rustled in the wind.

He wasn't surprised to hear her nearly silent steps slowly through the grass behind him.

Leo glanced over his shoulder and watched as Velvet Crowe approached alone, her eyes somber as she gazed at what he was standing in front of. He silently turned away and back towards the subject in question.

"…Here lie the townsfolk of Aball." He whispered gently into the night. "A town of peace, tranquility, and warmth. A town of rustic, hospitable folk, who did not turn away anyone in need of a place to rest."

"May they rest now themselves, peacefully, for all time."

He finished softly, "…Signed, a thankful wanderer."

The wind blew once more. Scraps of grass and petals whisked over the various overgrown mounds of greenery; the shallow graves of the townsfolk of Aball.

"…You wrote that?" Velvet asked softly, gesturing at the roughly-carved stone that laid before them at the center of the inadequate graveyard.

Leo nodded. "At the time, I thought you were among them as well." He sighed at length. "It was all I could bring myself to do. The graves were already dug by the time I arrived."

Velvet's eyes were soft. She hesitated briefly, before quietly responding with a few words.

"…Thank you." She breathed genuinely. "They deserved it."

Leo shook his head quietly. "It was my home too. I treasured every moment I lived there."

Abruptly, he raised his head and met Velvet's eyes seriously. "I'm not apologizing, you know. For not telling you about the dream arte." He sighed, closing his eyes and savoring the ocean breeze.

"These people… these memories… the person you used to be…" Leo shook his head. "They're part of you, you know."

A father who smiled and laughed. A bright and happy laboratory. An excitement for the future.

"The past can't be forgotten. Shouldn't be forgotten." Leo sighed, a distant look in his eyes. "I had fun, Velvet. While it lasted." He admitted quietly.

"Remembering who you were… it's a good thing. That's how I look at it."

Leo fiddled with his jacket absently. "I've made a lot of mistakes." He admitted. "Tons, actually. Sometimes I just feel like pointing my gun at my own head and pulling the trigger because of how much I hate what I've done."

He shrugged. "But when I do have thoughts like that… all I have to do is think back." His eyes were soft. "Think back to the good times. And remember that they aren't necessarily constrained to my past."

Cascading blonde hair. Warm brown eyes. The hint of a smile playing on her lips.

"Looking back is just a part of being alive." Leo stated firmly as he turned around to face the sea, his coat blowing in the wind. "…Don't you go forgetting it, Velvet."

"…"

The therion didn't respond, simply following his gaze, looking off into the horizon, thinking about things beyond the sea.

Just like Laphi had done, back then. All those years ago.

Down by their feet, the patch of bright pink Princessias thrived, prospering from the nutrients provided by the long-since decomposed corpses buried underneath them.

* * *

The sound of creaking wood surrounded the group as they walked back through Aball towards Velvet's house.

As they crossed the main plaza, Leo abruptly stopped. "Uh, you guys go on ahead. I'll catch up." He stated, looking away.

Laphicet blinked. "What do you need to do?"

The man shrugged vaguely. "Nothing in particular."

Velvet followed the man's gaze. She inclined her head slowly. "…Alright. Be careful."

Leo nodded silently.

He watched as the rest of the group walked away, leaving himself alone in the center of the quiet ghost town.

Dry leaves crunched under his boots as he turned and made his way over to the inn, his eyes moving swiftly in case any wild animals or daemons were hiding in the shadows.

Rotten wood creaked dangerously under his feet as he stepped onto the patio of the inn. He paused, listening. The only sound that greeted him from the gaping hole in the wall was the moaning of the wind.

He let himself in.

Inside, the lobby was in absolute disarray. Ancient torn ledger papers were scattered all over the floor, worn yellow from exposure to the elements and wholly illegible. His eyes were drawn to the rusted object in the corner, still intact after all these years.

He made his way through the quiet, darkened room, his boots padding on the torn and soiled carpeting that once welcomed him home.

Leo knelt in front of Drake's old grandfather clock, his eyes roaming critically around the frame, checking the damage.

Evidently satisfied, he pulled out a clockwork tool he had bought from Zara, the trader's daughter from Stonebury, and pried the clock open.

The man would leave the broken inn later on with a peculiarly content smile on his face.

The clock in the lobby would begin to count the time once more.

At least for just a little while longer.


	39. C37 - Rest

**Chapter 37 – Rest.**

"Go home Benwick! You're drunk!"

"No,  _you_ go home, Leo! You're talking plain crazy!"

All of the on-duty sailors aboard the Van Eltia sighed as the two nautical aficionados clashed once more. They were only a few hours out of Taliesin for crying out loud! Why did it already feel like a year of arguing had passed already?!

Leo raised his hands in befuddlement. "What the hell are you talking about!? The logic speaks for itself!"

In response, a frustrated Benwick pointed angrily at the map in his hands. "Look. Here's Taliesin. See?" He tapped the right side of the map. "And here's Port Zekson." He shook his head. "That's an  _obviously_ shorter trip than if you went all the way from Taliesin," he drew a line from the point on the map, "through Vortigern,  _all the way_  to Hellawes on a direct trip." He threw up his hands in exasperation, the Sylphjays on his head chirping in heated agreement. "That's just common sense! Just look at the map!"

Leo shook his head. "But the map doesn't take into account the wind currents in the strait between Westgand and Midgand." He explained carefully as if to a child, "Winds in this strait blow west to east, you see? If you went from Taliesin straight to Zekson, you'd be spending days more, and therefore arriving later than I would!"

Benwick sourly pointed out, grunting as he tied the knot he was working on, "Who the hell do you think you're talking to? A shipmate of Aifread's would be ashamed if he didn't know something as obvious as that." He gave the knot a secure tug before turning back over to the man who was still working on his own knot. "Leo, look on the map. Seriously! You'd be travelling twice the distance!"

The man grunted as he expertly tied off the complicated knot, standing up with an exasperated breath and snatching the map from him. "You're forgetting something very,  _very_ important, Benwick. Where's the next contact point?"

The sailor started walking, waving for Leo to follow him down the stairs. "At the front of the ship." His eyes narrowed. "Might I be enlightened to what it is exactly that I'm forgetting?"

Leo hopped the last two steps down and showed him the map. "This here map? Is a lie."

"Huh?"

Leo explained, "The world is  _round_ , Benwick." He drawled.

"No kidding." Benwick deadpanned. "What's your point?"

Leo proceeded to twist the map.

"HEY! THAT'S MY CHART!" Benwick roared. The birds on his head flapped angrily.

Leo shook his head determinedly. "It's a sacrifice for the greater good. You need to learn this, Benwick."

"The hell I do! That chart has seen me from one end of this world to the other." The blonde shook his head angrily. "Also, what the hell is your point?!"

Leo explained promptly. "Due to the curvature of the world, there is actually much, much less land in Northgand than this map depicts." He explained, waving the twisted map in the air. "It's hard to take a round object and try and flatten it into a rectangle. As a result, most maps you see have this crucial flaw in their inherent design."

Benwick blinked. "And that helps your case, how?"

Leo showed him the map crumpled at the top. "Generally speaking, travelling an inch at the bottom of this map would take roughly double the time than it would travelling an inch at the top of this map." He shrugged. "I knew a scholar in Loegres who studied these things."

"So, what you're saying is that… there is an equal amount of distance between Taliesin and Hellawes as there is distance to Zekson?"

Leo sighed in relief. "Finally! You get it!"

Benwick was thoughtful. "Huh. You know to tell you the truth, I never really realized that. But now that you mention it…" He trailed off pensively.

"So," Leo concluded, "Since there is roughly an equal distance between the two routes, and due to the unfavorable winds blowing in the strait, the  _best_ first destination for a Midgand-wide trip is Hellawes."

Benwick reached up and expertly wrapped a cable around an anchor point and began tying it. "So, then that would make the next destination Reneed then?"

Leo nodded, working on his own rope. "And then Cadnix. And then after that…"

"Zekson, right?"

Leo's eye twitched. "No, you moron. Then how the hell would we get to Yesult?"

Benwick raised an eyebrow, plainly challenging Leo's attitude. "We'd sail around the east flank of Midgand, of course!"

Leo barked a derisive laugh. "That's just plain dumb!"

"Oh yeah?! You're just plain dumb!"

"I'm not the one who puts fucking lemon juice on their fried chicken!"

"This again!?" Benwick roared, "I told you, you have to put at least that much on, or it's not worth eating at all!"

"WHO THE HELL PUTS LEMON ON FRIED CHICKEN?!" Leo got up angrily, utterly forgetting the rope he was working on tying.

"NORMAL PEOPLE!" Benwick cried back, butting heads with the man.

"More like DEVIANTS!" Leo shot back angrily.

"Oh? Like yourself?!" The man goaded.

Leo's eye twitched. "I'm not the one with  _birds_ in his hair!"

Benwick let out a gasp and reached for his hat protectively. "HEY! You're outta line, cannonhead!"

"The hell did you just call me?!"

"CA-NN-ON-HE-AD."

Leo threatened angrily, "Call me that one more time and I'll rip your precious map!"

Benwick's ire was palatable. "If you do that, you're going to see what one of Aifread's pirates really looks like when he's angry!"

Leo looked intrigued. "So… like a grouchy old hag." He observed vindictively.

"YOU-!"

On the other side of the ship, Eleanor winced as the shouting match continued, rubbing her ears. "Can't say I've ever seen this side of Leo." She muttered.

Standing at her side, Eizen shrugged. "It would appear that he's fitting in quite well."

Another loud yell rang out over the wind. "CANNONHEAD!"

"Says the BIRDHEAD!"

"Y-YOU TAKE THAT BACK!"

Eleanor sighed as Leo blew a very loud raspberry in Benwick's face. "…If you say so Eizen." She muttered. Her eyes drifted around the deck. She blinked as she saw Velvet talking to Laphicet. Or rather, talking about Laphicet, judging by her tight grip on her comb.

She gasped as the woman suddenly wavered on her feet.

"Velvet?!"

On the other side of the ship, Leo instantly forgot whatever petty squabble he was having with Benwick, whipping his head around as Laphicet's panicked yell rang through the deck. His eyes widened in shock as he saw Velvet waver and fall roughly to her knees, her eyes muddy and glazed. He ran over as fast as he could.

"I'll devour… as much as it takes…"

Velvet's eyes were unseeing and exhausted. "I will… have…" She breathed a single last word. "…vengeance…"

"Velvet!" Laphicet yelled urgently as the woman pitched forwards onto the deck.

"Hey-!" Leo rushed forwards and caught her, lowering her gently onto the wood floor. He quickly checked her pulse and her eyes.

"Leo?! What's going on?!"

Leo glanced briefly over his shoulder as Eleanor and Eizen came running over, the rest of the group not too far behind.

Eizen asked roughly, "Is she hurt?"

He explained as he turned his head back to the unconscious woman, "She's fainted." He clicked his tongue in frustration. "The moron must've been neglecting her own body for the past week…" He quickly concluded.

Laphicet asked urgently, "Is she going to be okay?!"

Leo met the malak's frantic eyes and nodded. "She'll be alright." He reassured. "This is just her body's way of telling her to take it easy and rest for a bit." He looked back down at the unconscious vengeful therion with sad eyes. "…We need to get her inside. Keep her out of the sun."

"I'll do it." Eizen nodded. He looked over his shoulder. "Rokurou. Give me a hand."

The swordsman nodded. "Of course."

Eleanor stood to attention. "I'll go prepare a bed for her in the main cabin. It'll be the calmest for her there."

"That would be for the best." Eizen agreed. "Let's go, Rokurou."

"I-I'm coming too!" Laphicet interjected, standing up abruptly and following the two as they carried the limp body of the therion towards the cabin door.

The reaper shrugged. "Do as you will."

Leo stood there and watched silently as the four hurried away with Velvet's exhausted body being carried inside, determined to help their misguided leader. His hands balled into fists.

He muttered quietly in shock. "She really… She would go that far…"

"Well, you know what they say."

Magilou's voice startled Leo, causing him to turn around and find the witch leaning casually against the railing with that ever-present sly smile on her face. She gave the man a grin.

"There is no rest for the wicked, after all." She pointed out.

Leo turned back and watched the door to the cabin swing shut with a thud..

"Yeah." He agreed soberly. "…I guess not."

Velvet's final words before she fainted kept replaying in his head, over and over again. They begged the question.

Would they be her final words when she fell asleep for good?

"Vengeance…" He mouthed quietly, tasting the foul word.

With morbid thoughts plaguing his head, the man went back to helping Benwick with the ship. He needed to keep going. That's all he  _could_  do.

* * *

"Haha! Come on Orthie! You can do it!" Kamoana's high-pitched squeal of encouragement rang through the halls.

In response, a determined "Aroo!" followed her call.

"Don't give up, Hawk! You can beat 'em!" Laphicet's fierce encouragement echoed off the cold stone walls.

A yip of conviction was his response.

"I believe in you Russ! You can beat them both! Come on!" Eleanor's helpful words tore sharply through the dreary atmosphere of the dim and dreary chambers.

"Whuff!" Was the sharp response to her cries.

Farther down the hall from where the shouts were originating, a group of pirates had gathered waiting eagerly at the mouth of the hallway as the noises grew louder and louder. From his own spot alongside the spectators, Leo shared a fond smile with the therion Medissa, whom had no choice but to smile in kind.

The man glanced over to his right. "Magilou!" Leo yelled across the chamber. "You sure that arte of yours works?!"

The witch, who was currently casting a low-power arte, sent him a look of annoyance. "Just who do you take me for?! Some kind of second-rate phony?!"

"Fine, I'll trust that you know what you're doing." Leo shrugged in resignation, eyeing the line of pure light mana that was being projected from the woman onto the stone floor a considerable distance away from the mouth of the hallway.

"If anything goes wrong, be sure to blame Bienfu." Magilou replied wryly. "He's the one channeling all the mana for everything at the moment."

Down by her feet standing on top of the channeling circle, Bienfu let out a moan. "Those guys better hurry up! I'm getting  _really tired_!"

Leo grinned. "Come on, Bienfu!" He encouraged. "Just a little while longer!"

On the other side of the allotted space, Rokurou had a savage smirk on his face. "I've got you beat, Eizen. There's no way I'm losing."

Next to him, the malak let out a laugh. "That'll be the day." He flipped his coin and caught it meaningfully. "You should know better than to bet against the reaper."

"…But shouldn't that be knowing better than betting  _with_ the reaper?"

Leo called out, "Forget about that, Leo-boy's got you  _both_ beat. Just watch and see!" He grinned cockily.

Both Rokurou and Eizen returned with similar mocking grins.

"We'll see." Rokurou nodded sagely.

Eizen shrugged. "The results will do the talking."

"Hush! Here they come!" Medissa announced loudly. "I hear them!"

All the gathered pirates' eyes were instantly on the opening of the hall. Faintly, the repeated sounds of claws on stone could be heard, growing louder by the second.

"Come on," Leo muttered quietly, "come on."

Rokurou's eyes were predatorial as he stared into the darkness.

Eizen's intense stare had the potential to frighten off a lion.

Magilou's grin was wide as she watched the mouth of the hallway out of the corner of her eye. "And so it ends…" She whispered in anticipation.

The tension in the chamber was unbearable. The distant tapping grew closer and closer.

"Ladies and gentlemen!"

Magilou's grand declaration rang out through the silence and over the heads of the audience fixated on the hallway. "I thank each and every one of you for coming out this evening to the world famous, most splendiferous, most wonderful, most brilliant, ANNUAL TITANIA DOG RACE!"

Perfectly timed were her words as just then out from the darkness of the hallway leapt 3 charging animals, neck and neck, their eyes fixated on the glowing finish line emitted by Magilou's arte.

The spectating pirates went wild.

"COME ON HAWK!"

"RUSS, BUDDY! KICK THEIR ASSES!"

"ORTHIE! DON'T YOU LOSE ME MY GALD!"

Rokurou added his own voice to the crowd. "YOU GOT THIS RUSS! DON'T LET ME DOWN!"

Eizen bellowed, "MAKE US PROUD, ORTHIE!"

Leo cheered on his own malak, "COME ON MUTT! DO THIS AND YOU'll BE ROLLING IN TREATS!"

Meanwhile, all Medissa could do was roll her eyes in fond exasperation at the raucous crowd. "Boys." She muttered to herself fondly, barely audible over the cacophony.

All three dogs charged, sprinting at breakneck pace towards the finish line at the other end of the chamber, heaving in exhaustion yet wide-eyed with determination.

From the entrance of the hallway came another figure; or rather a set of figures as Laphicet, Kamoana, and Eleanor emerged from the darkness cheering on their respective dogs while shooting forward in the air on the group's geoboard.

Bienfu groaned in pain at the strenuous effort.

"GO HAWK!" Laphicet called with a raised fist.

Kamoana, not to be outdone, raised her own fist. "GO ORTHIE!" She squealed.

Eleanor, albeit with a tomato-red face (clearly regretting having been persuaded to join such a silly, childish game), called out determinedly to her own dog. "YOU CAN DO IT RUSS!" She shouted, her fist raised high in the air.

All three dogs howled back in effort and determination as they charged headlong towards the glowing finish line.

Suddenly, the grey blur pushed out in front of the others.

Leo's eyes widened. "Hawk's gonna win!" He cried.

"No!" Both Rokurou and Eizen shouted.

The pup howled fiercely, giving his pumping legs everything he had left in his body. The finish line was meters away.

On the geoboard, Kamoana and Eleanor exchanged a meaningful nod.

"Okay! Russ! Orthie!" Eleanor cried. "DO IT!" She punched the air in front of her.

"Huh?!" Laphicet's eyes widened in surprise.

With a howl, the bodies of both Orthie and Russ became engulfed in putrid malevolence together. With a grotesque squelch, the dogs merged into Orthrus, the giant two-headed monster Velvet and the others had fought by Aball.

A monster that incidentally ran much, much faster than the two dogs alone.

With a grandiose leap, the hulking Orthrus sailed right over poor Hawk, piercing the finish line that he was inches away from.

BANG!

The arte Magilou had maintained exploded in a brilliant display of multi-colored confetti and petals, announcing the winner to the crowd. Orthrus landed heavily on the other side of the line and slowed down victoriously, heads held high.

"AND THE WINNER IS!" Magilou spun in a brilliant whirl complete with sparkles and confetti. "ORTHRUS!" She called happily.

A loud chorus of groans and boos was her response.

"What the hell is that?!"

"That's bullshit! Boo!"

"Who the hell won then?!"

"That was definitely  _not_  legal!"

The geoboard skidded to a stop and the three riders hopped off it (Bienfu instantly collapsed to the ground in relief).

Eleanor's face was self-righteous. "And neither is unlicensed gambling! It's unethical and immoral to risk your money on something so petty as random chance! You lot should be ashamed of yourselves!"

The boos resurged with a vengeance.

Laphicet laughed with a shrug. He turned to a grinning Kamoana, "I didn't expect that at the end there, Kamoana. Good race!" He held out a hand.

"Haha! The look on your face was so funny!" Kamoana happily shook Laphicet's hand. "Good race, Laphicet!" She giggled.

Medissa walked up between Eleanor and the booing crowd. "Listen up you lot!" She bellowed. "This was never meant to be a way to make money!" Her eyes fell kindly on the two smiling children shaking hands. "It was meant to be  _fun_." She raised an eyebrow at the spectators. "It would seem that you all got carried away and forgot what it was meant to be in the first place. Shame!"

It was amazing just how sheepish the crowd of pirates instantly became in the face of the lecturing mother.

"…W-we're sorry ma'am. You're right."

"I… guess we got a bit carried away... But you're right; it was really fun in the end!"

A laugh. "Yer damned right that was fun! That's going to be a story to tell the kids one day! The great Titania dog race…"

"How the hell are you going to have kids? Who'd want to marry your ugly mug?"

"Hey! Shut up! Anything could happen, alright?!"

The crowd naturally began to disperse, the various pirates going off to do other things around the island prison, their own hideout. Their own little slice of heaven.

Rokurou and Eizen exchanged shrugs.

"I guess this one's a bust, too." Rokurou pointed out.

Eizen shrugged. "Want to try your hand at fishing one more time?"

Rokurou returned his shrug. "Sure. But don't complain when I win this time."

"Heh. You're on."

The two rivals walked off as well.

Watching all of this unfold, Leo shook his head fondly.

It would seem that somehow, the dreaded prison island fearfully dubbed Titania, once a hellhole built with the sole purpose of generating pure despair and suffering, had become a playpen for little kids.

Leo chuckled, walking up to Hawk and Orthrus who were panting heavily in the corner and being attended to by their respective caretakers. He walked up to his malak with a smile.

"You'll always be a winner in my eyes, Hawk." He smiled happily, patting the wolf.

An exhausted but petulant whine.

He rolled his eyes. "…Yes. Alright fine." He reached into his coat and pulled out a handful of treats. "Here you are. Winner." He handed the wolf the handful of treats with a smile on his face.

Hawk yipped happily, giving his master a lick on the hand before turning his full exhausted attention to the fruits of his labor.

Laphicet chuckled as he walked up to Leo. "That was so much fun." The malak commented. "Hawk was amazing!"

Leo nodded happily. "Yes, he did. Looks like the mutt's good for something after all." He glanced over at the therion Orthrus, whom was currently receiving a joint grooming job from both Eleanor and Kamoana. "...But it seems he's no match for cheaters." He drawled loudly.

Kamoana stuck her tongue out at the two guys. "You're just  _jealous_!"

Eleanor huffed indignantly. "All's fair when you race against pirates and daemons." She responded, reaching under a head and scratching it. "That's just how things are!"

Both heads of Orthrus let out similar snorts of self-righteousness. Hawk rolled his eyes before returning to his treats.

Magilou strolled over and commented dryly, "My, how vicious the dark underbelly of crime really is." She shrugged. "Anyways, that was fun while It lasted. I have to go wake this one up with some seawater." She casually raised her hand which was presently pinching an utterly drained Bienfu who was moaning in his sleep.

"Bieeen… I'm so… tired…" The malak mumbled.

Laphicet shook his head in amusement as the witch walked off. "Well, I think I should get back to Velvet now." He supposed.

Leo's smile faded at the name. "…Yeah." He trailed off, looking away. "…You're a good kid, you know that, Phi?" He muttered.

Laphicet blinked. "I… I don't think so." He sighed. "A 'good kid' would understand what Velvet is going through. But I… can't." He admitted reluctantly.

"Is that why you're not eating?" Leo asked quietly.

Laphicet blinked. "O-oh... So, you knew about that…" He held his stomach self-consciously. "Yeah, that's why." He admitted.

Leo stood up and gave the malak a fond pat. "I'm glad she has you, kiddo." He gave him a genuine smile. "You bring out the human in her, you know that?"

The malak looked grim. "But even still…"

Leo sighed. "Yeah." He agreed.

The two stood there silently, the happy moment overshadowed by the mental state of the woman they held close to their hearts.

Seemingly helpless to try and fight back the growing darkness inside of her.

"…Come on kid. All we can do is let her know we're with her." He patted the kid once more. "Your face should be the first one she sees when she wakes up."

Laphicet nodded resolutely. "Will do. Have fun with Orthie and Russ!" He grinned.

Leo glanced over at the two dogs in question, whom had turned back from their therion form into their true forms and were currently receiving loving scratches from the two girls. He grinned. "Yeah, I will. Maybe I can get them to like Velvet, eventually."

_And get them to see that it's not Velvet's fault for Niko's death…_

Laphicet gave Hawk one more pat on the head for a spectacular performance in the race. "I'll see you later, Leo."

"Good luck." The man wished as the malak walked off, headed to the docks.

He let out a sigh, looking around the now mostly-empty main chamber. And groaned as he took in all the leftover confetti laying around.

"MAGILOU!" He yelled angrily to nobody in particular. Of course, he didn't get a response. Typical. He looked over at where Orthie and Russ were only to find an empty corner. Evidently Kamoana and Eleanor had scrambled off with the dogs, leaving him alone in the chamber.

With another resigned sigh, the lone man went off to fetch a broom and a dust pan.

A nest of evil vipers indeed.

* * *

BUMP.

"Hey! Watch where the hell you're headed!" Dyle's (seemingly perpetually) grouchy voice rang out over the docks, being heard by the group of pirates presently helping to load supplies onto the Van Eltia in preparation for the long voyage to Endgand.

Kurogane glared (or at least, it seemed; it was hard to tell) at the lizard daemon as he shifted the heavy crate perched on his shoulder. "I don't have a head, remember?"

"That doesn't mean you get to run into me! I'm carrying all the eggs for crying out loud!" Dyle meaningfully lifted the crate plastered with the word "fragile" on all sides.

"And whose idea was it to put all the eggs in one basket?" Kurogane shot back.

Dyle rolled his eyes. "You wanna complain, take it up with Benwick." He hefted the crate. "Just be careful, alright? I've got enough lack of balance as it is."

Leo also rolled his eyes as he trotted by the two while carrying a barrel of gunpowder. "How the hell did you manage to survive as a human sailor without a tail then?" He asked dryly.

The daemon's eye twitched as he followed the man down the dock. "Let me know when  _you_ turn into a daemon, and then we'll talk."

Leo shrugged. "I don't get it."

Up above, leaning on the starboard railing, Benwick yelled down at the three, "Hey! Dyle! Be careful with those eggs!"

"What the hell do you think I'm doing?!" The daemon yelled back.

"Complaining about your balance, I'm sure."

Dyle's temper rose. "Gah! You humans just don't get it! Oh crap-" He swore as he began wobbling, his balance out of whack.

Kurogane promptly steadied the man with his free hand. "Careful. I swear, you're more fragile than those eggs you're holding."

"The hell did you just call me?!"

Leo rolled his eyes as the two behind him started bickering once more. Tuning out the yelling and name-calling with a practiced ear, the man turned his attention instead to the activity going on all around the Van Eltia.

Lionel Island in Endgand was their destination, which meant about two to three weeks' worth of travel both ways and would entail some stops along the way at some other ports to restock. He was sure Benwick was sorting out the details with Eizen right now. The long trip meant there had to be plenty of supplies in the hold; it was a well-laid out procedure that the Aifread's crew managed to perfection, albeit with the usual amount of bickering.

A caw drew his eyes up. He grinned as Grawky circled around the ship, a hefty dead fish in his claws.

"Whoo! Way to go Grawky!" Kamoana's cry from atop the ship rang out. "Now throw it down and have Hawk catch it!"

Benwick's panicked call followed, "Hey, hey, hey! Don't you dare drop that on the deck!"

Kamoana blew a raspberry. "He's not gonna drop it on the deck! Hawk's going to catch it, duh!"

"But what if he misses?!"

A hmph. "Hawk won't miss! He's a good boy, aren't you Hawk? Yes, you are!"

"Grr…" Benwick's growl of frustration was almost animal.

Leo let out a grin as he climbed the gangplank up to the deck and made his way over to the bickering girl and shipmate. "Well Benwick, maybe you could've seen how good of a boy Hawk really is if you had the guts to go to the dog race earlier." He grinned, hefting the barrel of gunpowder. "Ya missed out, big time."

Benwick shuddered in response. "No thank you. Hawk is bad enough, but at least he's a malak." He winced. "Having those dogs on board on the way back from Taliesin was bad enough for me. I'd rather not get any closer to those pups than I have to."

Kamoana goaded, "You're such a scaredy cat, Benwick. Orthie and Russ are super well behaved! You don't have to be scared!"

Benwick shook his head wildly. "No thank you. I'd rather hang out with the seagulls."

Leo rolled his eyes. "You're such a wimp, Benwick. You make those coward dogs seem brave."

Down by their feet, Hawk let out a yip of agreement.

The shipmate glared at Leo in response.

"You're one to talk, Leo." The three of them turned as Velvet walked over, her own arms laden with a barrel of gunpowder. She let out a sly grin. "Shall I discuss that one time you found a spider in your inn room back in Aball?"

Benwick gave Leo an incredulous look. "A spider? Really?"

Leo sputtered, "Th-that's not true!"

Kamoana burst into giggles. "Leo's scared of spiders!" She cried.

Benwick roared with laughter. "HAH! Leo's scared of spiders!"

Leo glared at Velvet as the two bent over in laughter. "I hate you." He put simply.

The therion shrugged. "Come on. I think Grawky's going to be dropping that fish anytime now, and I don't wanna be the one it lands on."

Abruptly, Benwick stopped laughing and looked up to the skies in terror as another caw split through the air. "NO! STOP! DON'T YOU DARE!" He called, running off.

"YEAH! DO IT GRAWKY! DO IT!" Kamoana chased after him, Hawk hot on her heels.

Leo and Velvet shared a fond eye roll and made their way below deck together with their respective barrels of gunpowder.

Down below, the two weaved their way through the cargo hold, making way for other pirates also stocking the hold with various goods for the trip. All around them the wood creaked gently, bobbing lightly up and down in the port. It felt like being inside the bell of a sleeping beast. Up above, the lanterns creaked quietly with every wave that nudged the ship.

The two made their way over to the back end of the cargo hold where the spare gunpowder was stored. This area of the hold was mostly stocked, so there was nobody else to avoid bumping into at the moment.

Leo dropped the barrel of gunpowder next to the others with a sigh of relief. "Man, I swear, the people in this island are going to drive me mad at some point."

Velvet put her own barrel down gently with a smirk. "Honestly. They're a real circus troupe."

Leo grinned. "It's a shame you missed the Annual Titania Dog Race. Now that was exciting."

The therion rubbed her temples. "So, I've heard. If you ask me, it doesn't seem particularly productive." Her eyes were hard. "We are fighting against the whole world, you know."

"Gee, really? I totally forgot." Leo snarked back. He sighed and sat himself on the barrel he'd just put down and met Velvet's eyes. "…Are you alright, Velvet?" He asked seriously.

The woman gave him a look. "I'm  _fine_ , Leo."

"Oh. Really." Leo drawled sarcastically. "Because passing out for three days in a row isn't what I would define as fine."

"Would you consider waging war against the Abbey as fine?" Velvet shot back. She clenched her fist. "I need to keep going." She breathed. "The only thing I live for is my vengeance. That's all. What happens to me doesn't matter."

The creaking of the overhead lanterns filled the silence.

"You're… so damned stubborn, you know that?" Leo glared at her angrily. "A damned mule."

Velvet scoffed. "You're one to talk."

Leo's voice raised angrily. " _I_ don't forget to eat, sleep, or drink!  _I_ don't let myself be consumed by my one goal in life to the point where I forget to remember that I'm  _alive_!" He waved his hand in the general direction of the prison. "You see that poor kid? He starved himself for you!"

Velvet returned angrily, "And I never asked him to do that!" She glared at him. "I told you all, I'm only here for my vengeance. That's  _it_. I told him what it's like to be alive because I wanted  _him_ to be alive.  _I_ don't want to be alive.  _ALL I want is_  to kill Artorius. That's  _it_ , Leo." She hissed.

"Clearly." Leo remarked dryly. He shook his head violently. "Damnit, Velvet. You can't  _do this_!" He roared, his voice echoing inside the hold of the ship. "Can't you see how everyone's worried sick about you?!" He yelled.

Velvet returned coldly, "That's their mistake." She met Leo's eyes firmly. "My body doesn't matter. My health doesn't matter. Me being alive does not matter." Her fist clenched.

"This is just the choice that I've made. You would do well to not forget that."

With that, she turned on her heel and left.

In the quiet of the cargo hold, Leo was still.

"DAMNIT!"

THWACK.

A painful sting ran up Leo's arm as he slammed his fist into the wall of the ship. He welcomed the physical pain. That at least he could manage. The man stayed there, sitting there alone and mentally cursing himself.

Cursing himself for being so useless.

Outside, overhead the prison island of Titania, ominous dark storm clouds brewed.


	40. C38 - Sister

**Chapter 38 – Sister.**

"…Now that you mention it, don't Abbey ships usually have a bigger crew?"

Rokurou's question seemed to echo through the distress-signaling Abbey ship; one the Van Eltia had come across on its route to Lionel Island.

Leo glanced around, counting only a handful of exorcists lying on the deck, all currently in various stages of suffering due to the Corsair's scourge. "They do…" He trailed off as the door to the deck abruptly opened with a weak squeal. All the eyes in the group flew to the new threat.

"These were all… who were aboard when I hijacked the ship… and made them set sail."

Eleanor gasped, standing up in surprise. "Teresa!"

Indeed, the last person Leo had expected to find on an Abbey ship sailing in the remote eastern waters of the world, evidently suffering from the Corsair's Scourge herself, Exorcist Praetor Teresa Linares was stumbling towards the group. The ever-stout exorcist Leo had always known, brought to such a state…

Velvet crossed her arms unimpressed. "You seriously plan to fight in that condition?"

"No. No." Teresa shook her head, her brilliant blue earring jangling with the movement. "I know you've won this one." She admitted freely. "Use me as you will."

Velvet blinked.

"Lionel Island is where you'll find Dis… a therion." Her explanation was pained. "My brother Oscar is guarding over it."

Understanding dawned on Leo's face. "Oh…" He breathed.

Teresa's eyes grew determined. "You should know that Oscar's acquired a powerful new arte… Its formula developed by Lord Melchior."

The revelation caused a shift in the entire group.

"The arte heightens a malak's power far beyond its normal limits. The effect is… incredible. Normal artes don't even compare." She blinked a few times, at length refocusing on the group before her. "…Even were you win, you wouldn't come away unscathed."

"…Why are you telling us this?" Velvet's eyes were narrow.

"The arte is still untested and imperfect. There's no guarantee its caster will survive the effects." She breathed.

Leo exchanged a meaningful glance with Eleanor.

"I don't want anything to happen to Oscar!" Teresa declared firmly. "If I'm your hostage, Oscar won't move against you. This will afford you a window to snatch the therion and make your escape."

Velvet's face was a masked of emotion. "You're willing to betray the Abbey?" She asked.

"There's nothing in this world that could ever replace Oscar." She met Velvet's eyes pleadingly. "Does a sister need any other reason to want to save her brother?" She asked quietly.

Leo watched Velvet's eyes widen almost imperceptibly. He came to the realization just then.

Teresa was her reflection.

The exorcist's words began to taper out. "I'll place my life… in your… hands…" She slumped to her knees in front of the group. "Just… save Oscar…" she pleaded as her eyes closed.

With those words said, the proud praetor let out a breath and collapsed onto the deck alongside her hijacked crewmembers.

"Lady Teresa!" Laphicet scrambled forward to attend to his former master. Eleanor and Leo rushed forward as well.

Leo shook his head in shock as he kneeled down next to her. "…I thought I'd see her like this." He muttered

Eleanor nodded in a similar display of disbelief. "To think she would go this far."

Laphicet turned to Velvet in distress. "Velvet!" He pleaded the therion.

Velvet nodded, all business. "If true, this information will be of use to us." She stated simply, unaffected. "For now, let's bring her aboard and give her the medicine."

Eizen nodded. "Benwick." He looked at the shipmate standing next to him. "Have some of the members prepare the brig."

The man nodded. "Will do. I'll be back with the Sale'toma." He hopped smartly up the railing of the exorcist ship and ran across the gangplank back over to the Van Eltia.

Leo kept his careful eyes on Velvet during the whole exchange.

"Leo!" He blinked as Eleanor nudged him. "Help me bring her onboard."

"Alright." Leo nodded slowly and went to help.

Why did he have such a bad feeling about this?

* * *

CRACK!

The ring of a shot echoed through the desolate wastelands of the Baird Marsh, bouncing off the crumbling stone walls of an ancient civilization. There wasn't a single living thing for kilometers around save for the occasional malak shambling around aimlessly in order to fulfill its task of guarding the area. Overhead, dark and stormy clouds hovered menacingly, threatening the swampy area with even more rain.

CRACK!

"Rokurou! Gimme a hand!" Leo yelled sharply as he switched from rife to sword and parried a slash from a lizard malak's sword. The man grunted as the blades slid off each other with an ear-piercing clang.

The enemy lizard malak roared and spun around, slashing at Leo with its vicious-looking curved saber. Leo leapt backwards, his boots sliding on the slick grass, and barely managed to get his blade up in time to guard its fierce follow-up strike.

Metal met metal in a sharp clang and slid off each other once again, another sound added to the cacophony around the two that made up another battle between the group and a contingent of malaks on their way to the therion and Oscar.

With a grunt, the man stabbed back, forcing the malak to dodge to the side with a snarl. Suddenly, the lizard howled in agony as the grass behind it was painted red with blood.

Rokurou grinned savagely as the malak's body tumbled to the grass, flicking his swords clean of blood. "You called?" He asked lightly.

Leo let out a breath of relief. "You're a lifesaver, you know that?"

Over on the other side of the battlefield, Magilou pointed out with a yell, "Technically, wouldn't he be a lifetaker?" She flicked her hands, causing the guardians floating above them to spin violently. With a massive crash, the malaks attacking Velvet and Eizen were engulfed in flames. "Hah! Paint the town red!" She cackled over the squeals of agony.

"Well." Rokurou shrugged, turning around to fend off some reinforcement malaks off of Leo's position. "She's not wrong!"

With a series of metallic clicks, Leo reloaded his empty rifle with rounds and raised it to eye level. "Velvet! Crossfire right! Two!" He yelled.

"Alright!" The therion responded, leaping to the left at the same time the giant stone golem she was fighting smashed its heavy fists right into the ground the woman was just occupying.

CRACK-CAK!

CRACK-CAK!

The two piercing rounds flew straight through the stone golem malak and showered the grass below with debris. The golem itself reeled from the impact, clutching the holes that were now leaking copious amounts of bright blue blood.

"Take this!" Velvet shouted as her body tensed, the air around her heavy with collected mana.

"ZERO IMPACT!"

With a crash, the woman flew forward sword first, piercing the stone golem and sending it flying into the air as if it were made of paper. Her steel-clad boots skidded in the mud as she recovered from the arte, sliding forwards and unceasingly attacking another malak in a non-stop whirlwind of kicks and slashes. The shattered pieces of the destroyed golem crashed to the ground behind her in sporadic bloody heaps.

"Laphicet! Watch out!"

Leo turned at the sound of Eleanor's worried call, finding the woman laboriously fighting off three lizard daemons at once with her spear, trying to protect the malak casting spells at her back.

Quickly taking in the situation, Leo charged into action.

"On your right!" He yelled, leaping in and slashing at a malak getting too close for comfort.

"Got it!" Eleanor seamlessly fell in with Leo's rhythm, backing up and allowing the man to provide more efficient support. With a yell, the woman jabbed the head of her spear precisely towards the neck of one of the lizard malakhim. The point connected with a satisfying squelch and roar of pain.

"Watch it!" Leo yelled as he lunged underneath Eleanor's rigid spear and stabbed forwards, driving off another malak charging the woman's left flank and saving her life.

"Hawk! Flame wall!" He yelled, gesturing at the offending malak. With a howl, the malak appeared in a flash of green and sent out a flame wall, driving off the enemy malak even further and giving the two space to breathe.

Eleanor followed his lead and turned to the other two malaks with a decisive slash, driving them off. "You're clear!" She yelled.

With swift movements, Leo sheathed his gauntlet blade and reached for his rifle, clicking the safety off.

CRACK-CAK!

CRACK-CAK!

The two malakhim Eleanor had driven off tumbled to the ground, dead.

Leo slid the lever of his rifle forward. "I'm out!" He announced.

Eleanor took stance in front of him, parrying a stroke from the remaining lizard malak with a cry. "Do it!" She ordered.

Leo did as he was told, slotting more rounds into his rifle with a series of clicks as Eleanor fended off the rest of the attacking malakhim. He glanced briefly over his shoulder as he worked. "How's it hanging, Phi?" He asked wryly.

Laphicet gave him a quick grin. "It's going fine." He made a couple of precise gestures with his arms, the air around him whirling with collected mana. Across the field, a group of malaks screamed in pain as they were engulfed in a crushing gravity field. "I think we've got this." The malak observed.

"Hey, you never know," Leo pointed out as he slid the last bullet into the feed, "two of the malaks might turn into a big malak and beat you at the last minute."

Laphicet chuckled. "Yeah, let's hope that doesn't happen."

Down by their feet, Hawk made a dramatic display of hurt.

"Oh, quit whining." Leo looked down at his malak. "You still got the treats in the end."

A huff.

"Yeah, yeah, you'll get more." Leo waved his hand dismissively. "Just keep up the good work, huh?"

A determined yiff.

Laphicet laughed. "Hawk'll do anything if you promise him treats, huh?"

"Spoiled mutt." Chuckling, Leo turned his attention back to the battlefield. Eleanor had successfully defeated the malakhim that had been threatening the two of them and had charged off to help Velvet with the last remaining stragglers.

It would seem this one was a wrap. He slid his arm through the strap of his rifle and returned it to its perch behind his shoulder.

He blinked as he heard footsteps behind him, turning around to find Teresa watching the scene with a strange look on her face. She stepped softly up to Leo and Laphicet.

"…It would seem that you and Eleanor are as good of a team as ever." The ice queen exorcist observed impartially.

Leo shrugged. "Still not as good as you and Oscar." He returned with a small smile. "The two of you always kicked our asses in training."

Teresa's eyes were wholly devoid of humor. "So." She asked quietly. "Why did  _you_  betray us, then?"

A distant boom shook the field as one of Eizen's artes struck the ground, incinerating a few malakhim on the spot.

The distant red flash lit up Leo's face as he responded honestly, "I'm helping a friend." He shrugged. "You know the story behind the Lord of Calamity, right?"

Teresa's eyes were hard. "How could I not? I know everything there is behind the monster who will destroy the world."  _And the villains who walk with her_. The unspoken accusation was clear behind her eyes.

Laphicet glanced nervously between the two.

Leo crossed his arms firmly, his shouldered rifle rattling lightly with the action. "Then you know where I stand." He shrugged. "Besides, I was never technically with you guys in the first place, so you can't really call me a traitor."

Teresa gave a humorless scoff. "I always knew you were a coward, Leonex Davidson." She noted coldly. "The moment I heard your name through my brother's mouth, I knew."

"Coward? Sure." Leo shrugged the insult off. "I was back then. Now, I disagree." He fiddled with his gauntlet blade absently. "I'm trying my best to do what I think is right, instead of running away. My place is with my friend. I've made that decision."

He gave a crooked grin. "Isn't that all we can do, in the end?" He asked.

Teresa was silent for a bit, carefully observing the determination in Leo's eyes.

She intoned quietly, "Sometimes… the best thing for one to do is to think how much one can truly help in a given position." She looked away.

"I respect your determination to help your friend. That much I will admit. How could I judge you when I'm in the very same position myself with regards to my brother?" Her gaze pierced Leo's. "But I ask you this, Leo." The woman took a heavy step forward.

"Are you  _really_  helping her?" She asked quietly.

Another explosion shook the ground between the two humans.

Leo didn't have an answer for her.

His jaw clenched as he avoided the woman's eyes. Because deep down, he knew. He knew he wasn't helping. She already broken.

_Useless._

"A black soul like hers…" Teresa continued calmly. "You think that she deserves redemption?" She shook her head. "Never mind that, do you think she is  _capable_ of redemption?" She stepped forwards, passing Leo's shoulders.

Without looking over the praetor muttered softly, "Think carefully about the choices you make, Leo. That's all I can offer you."

"…" Leo was silent as the woman left, standing with clenched fists and a pained expression.

"Leo…" Laphicet murmured in worry as he gazed up at the conflicted man.

He muttered quietly, "Just… don't mind me, Phi." He gave the malak a smile that was more a twitch of his lips. "You go and help Velvet."

"…Alright." The malak nodded hesitantly, before turning around and heading over to the others.

Leo stood there quietly by himself, staring up at the dark clouds above.

* * *

"Oh. It's a beetle."

"Y-yeah, uh… A Lionel Giant Thunderstag Beetle, to be exact."

Leo blinked out of his thoughts and looked over in surprise, seeing Lady Teresa and her former Malak Number Two conversing before a tree.

Teresa made a face. "Why do they always have to have such awkward names?"

A cloud seemed to appear over Laphicet as he hung his head. He muttered quietly, "I… I think it's a cool name…"

Leo could see the surprise register in Teresa's eyes. He watched with a slight smile as the woman, with obvious practice, gently plucked the beetle from the trunk of the tree.

"I've never been able to figure out why boys are so drawn to these things…" Her voice was fond. She held out the beetle to the malak.

Laphicet blinked in surprise at the proffered insect. "Huh?!"

The praetor cocked her head curiously. "What's the matter?" She raised the docile insect in her gloved hand. "Didn't you want to see it?"

"Uh, yeah!" Laphicet remembered his manners. "Thanks!" He gave her a thankful smile in return as he collected the bug in his hands. He gazed at it with wide eyes. "It's just like they say! It's huge!"

"…" The lady in the dress looked off into the distance with a hint of a smile on her lips. "…When he was little… Oscar was always running around the woods collecting bugs." She exhaled in fond exasperation. "He'd get so into it, it was never long before he'd trip and hurt himself."

"Did you grab bugs for him?"

Teresa looked back down at the curious malak. "Yes." She answered lightly. "I thought they were gross, but I was much taller than him, and I had the reach."

It was always a warm surprise to see that look on Teresa's face; the look she could only get when talking about her beloved brother.

"Once," she recounted, "he gave me a whole pile of cicada shells as his way of thanking me." She shook her head fondly. "I just screamed."

"…I'm sure he just wanted you to know how he felt." Laphicet observed.

Teresa blinked and whipped her gaze back onto the malak in obvious surprise, caught off-guard by the boy's empathy.

Laphicet fumbled to explain himself under her acute stare. "I-I can relate to that." He admitted.

The silence drew on awkwardly.

"…Rather unusual for a malak like you to contemplate such things." She observed quietly, her eyes sharp.

Laphicet looked down. "Well… I try to." He admitted. "It's just… really hard sometimes."

His former master fiddled with her single earring. "It's hard for people, too." She muttered. "Sometimes… it feels insurmountable. And yet we can't give up…"

Laphicet's eyes were wide.

"Sometimes, you just have to say what you believe in your heart, even if you're not good at saying it."

The malak was deeply pensive. "What I believe…" He trailed off.

Teresa shrugged. "That's just my take on it." She muttered, shaking herself. "Have fun with the beetle." She wished in as a way of parting as she walked off, following the rest of the group.

Leo trotted up quietly to the malak as the woman left, his own thoughts pensive.

"…Teresa's really something, isn't she?" He muttered.

Laphicet blinked as he registered Leo's presence. "Yeah. She is." He looked down at the beetle cradled in his hands. "She's really strong…"

Looking at the bug in Laphicet's hands, Leo was reminded of a different time, of a different bug. And of a different woman.

"She reminds me of Velvet." He muttered.

"Huh?" Laphicet blinked.

Leo looked away, off into the same horizon that Teresa had considered. "In more ways than one, really…" He trailed off.

A younger brother they would move heaven and earth for. Oscar. Laphi.

Laphicet cocked his head in confusion. "But… they're not the same, either." He pointed out.

Leo shook his head. "No. They're not." He agreed.

_Teresa still has her brother. Velvet doesn't._

… _For now._

The silence returned. Quietly, gently, Laphicet gingerly returned the Lionel Giant Thunderstag Beetle back on the trunk where it had come from, undisturbed.

"Hey Leo?" The malak asked. "What do you believe?"

The man's eyes were drawn in the direction of the group. Quite the heavy question. One he didn't have an answer to. He let out a sigh. "I don't know, Phi." He confessed softly. "There's another life lesson for you, I guess."

"Life's all about finding what you believe." He remarked dryly. "And right now… I have no idea what I believe."

Laphicet furrowed his brow quietly in response to that comment.

"Phi! Leo! Get going!" Velvet's distant yell reached their ears, making them jump.

"Yes ma'am!" Leo hollered back.

He glanced down at the malak with a resigned shrug. "Well," He let out with a sigh, "until then, the best thing one can do is just keep going. That's all that they can do until they find the answer to that question."

Laphicet's eyes thoughtful. "Keep going… Alright. Let's go."

Leo patted his back. "Come on."

Together, the two of them made their way forward, following the group with heavy minds. The subject of their thoughts and their destination were one and the same.


	41. C39 - Brother

**Chapter 39 – Brother.**

"I knew you'd come, Velvet."

Oscar's voice rang out over the field of white flowers as the group approached, his back to them. At his feet, lying unconscious among the petals, was a horned daemon Leo assumed was the therion Dis. His fists clenched as he watched Velvet coldly slide her gauntlet blade out and hold the edge up to Teresa's neck carelessly for Oscar to see.

"Sister?!" His eyes bulged.

There was nothing in Leo's being that made him feel good about what they were doing.

Nothing at all.

Velvet's voice was emotionless. "As plain as day. Now put down your sword and let go of my therion." Her eyes narrowed. "If you don't… I'll kill her."

The Calcite sword Leo had bought for her glinted in the light, rubbing against the soft, vulnerable flesh of the man's beloved sister.

"Y… you coward!" Oscar's single eye bespoke untold hatred as he stood there, frozen in indecision.

Leo spoke up quietly. "Do as she asks, Oscar." He suggested.

The man's eye took in his presence in surprise. His eyes narrowed. "I never took you for such a monster, Leo. That day we met… I thought all you wanted to do was to help others from daemons." His eyes went back to his sister, held hostage by that hateful woman. "And you come to me threatening my dear sister's life?!" He seethed angrily. "You… monster."

Leo took in the man's anger quietly, his jaw rigid.

He responded softly, "Things have changed… Oscar." He shifted uncomfortably. He opened his mouth… but had nothing more to say.

There was very little to say at the moment.

The man scoffed derisively. "So, they have." He spat to the side in disgust. "To think I called you a friend." His glare was pointed. "How I regret that now. Bastard." He cursed.

Leo didn't blame him.

"I'm sorry… Oscar… I've become nothing but a burden…" Teresa gulped, her throat visually rubbing against the threateningly sharp metal.

"Teresa…" The woman's brother's hard gaze instantly softened in the face of his sister's despair. "It's… It's not like that." He tried.

Instantly, the fight went out of him as he connected eyes with his older sibling.

"All right. I'll put down my arms." He raised his hands in the air slowly.

Ever so slowly, the man bent down to the ground, his blue blade sinking downwards towards the grass below. His eye was fixed on Velvet.

The field of flowers suddenly went silent. All eyes were on the caped man as he lowered his sword closer and closer to the ground.

Suddenly, the man tensed.

CLANG!

Leo swore as the man's sword flew through the air towards Velvet, only to be parried, sailing off into the distance. He blinked, abruptly registering that Teresa had used the distraction to flee Velvet's grasp and return to her brother's side.

"Teresa, get back!" Oscar called, locking his gaze on Velvet. "Your fight is with me, daemon!"

He blinked when he realized Velvet wasn't looking at him.

"Ugh!" The man grunted involuntarily as his sibling struck him down with a pained expression. His body landed amongst the flowers, unconscious.

"Forgive me… Oscar… This is the only way I can protect you." Teresa intoned shakily.

Surprised but accepting of the result, Velvet lowered her sword. "…We've kept our end of the bargain." She yelled across the field of flowers. "Take him and get out of here."

The moment Teresa met Velvet's eyes, Leo knew.

This wasn't going to end well.

"I can't do that. It will reflect poorly upon him." Her eyes were determined, staring down at the brother she loved.

Laphicet yelled in shock, "Lady Teresa?! Please!"

Velvet's eyes were hard. "Have you forgotten? You're just a powerless human."

Teresa took a step back. "You're right… I am a weak… worthless human." Her eyes were hard as she continued to walk backwards. Towards the rising form behind her. "But He has shown me the light! And it shines! My body is receptive to Innominat's power!" She declared.

Leo exchanged frantic glances with Eleanor. There wasn't anything they could do!

"And with it, I can protect everything that I care about!" Her arms rose up on both sides, freely offering herself to the winged therion rising up ominously behind her.

Leo swore, grabbing his rifle. "Shit!" He swore.

Eleanor gasped with both hands covering her mouth.

Velvet took a step forwards in shock.

"AAAAAAHHHH!" Teresa's scream pierced the air as she was bitten by the daemon and engulfed in a plume of malevolence.

"Lady Teresa!" Laphicet yelled.

Magilou yelled, "She's fused with the therion!"

The malevolence receded, revealing an utterly twisted rendition of the brave praetor Teresa Linares, hovering in the air with a corrupted body in a horrific mix of pink scales and human skin.

"I'll kill you all!" She screamed hysterically, her eyes now a mix of green and pink. "Anything to protect Oscar!"

With a flap of her new wings, the woman charged.

"Tch!" Velvet sprang into action and charged forwards to meet the woman's charge. "If you insist!" She roared back.

All around Leo, the group moved to support Velvet, taking out their weapons and preparing to fight the suicidal woman.

"Lady Teresa…" Laphicet breathed.

Leo met the malak's gaze with a conflicted expression. He breathed quietly, "Remember when I said she reminded me of Velvet?"

CLANG!

Teresa's spear clashed with Velvet's blade, the first of many exchanges between the two women as they brawled amongst the field of flowers.

Leo exhaled. "Teresa would do anything." His gaze fell on the unconscious body of Oscar, lying forgotten in the flowers. "Anything at all… for her brother…" He trailed off.

Laphicet tugged on his sleeve. "Come on! We've gotta try and stop her!"

"Which 'her' are you referring to, huh?" Leo muttered sourly as he clicked the safety off his rifle and charged forwards.

"Taste the pain you inflicted on him! RAAAHH!" Teresa screamed as she violently thrust her spear over and over again towards Velvet, forcing the woman to curse and backpedal quickly to avoid being skewered.

CLANG!

Rokurou grunted as he caught the woman's spear with his dual blades and threw it to the side, allowing for Eizen's charge forwards, his fist flying through the air.

With a powerful thrust of her wings, Teresa dodged the fist by flying to the side, retaliating with a swift aerial kick to Eizen's back.

"GAH!" The man grunted as he was thrown to the ground by the strike, crashing down hard into the flowers.

"Teresa! Stop this!"

The woman's corrupted eyes flew to Eleanor as she completed her arte with a yell. Swiftly, she dived out of the way of the forming arte, flying towards the praetor with her spear aimed for the woman's heart. "FOR OSCAR!" She roared, lifting her spear.

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

The fused therion screamed in agony as the synthetic bullets rammed into her exposed flesh. Her wings went limp and she crashed into the ground, rolling from her previous momentum.

Leo cocked his rifle one more time and reloaded, yelling over his shoulder, "Magilou! Do it now!"

"Right away!" The witch sang, grabbing a single guardian and furiously channeling mana into it.

"Arise… Arise!" She goaded, pushing as much mana into the guardian as possible. The enchanted weapon rose and rose higher and higher, its shadow reaching the ruins beyond the surrounding waters.

"Ascended... ANGEL!"

CRASH!

With a furious impact, the tip of the elongated guardian slammed directly onto Teresa as she was getting up, knocking her directly into the floor.

"Laphicet!" Leo yelled.

The malak nodded and quickly finished his arte. With a boom, the air around the fallen therion increased tenfold in pressure, squeezing the energy out of the woman's body. As the arte worked, Leo gestured at the group members, having them regroup at his position.

With a shimmer, the arte dissipated, leaving the woman gasping face down on the grass.

"I… can't lose… not here…" She gasped quietly.

Laphicet's arms fell hesitantly in the aftermath of the arte. "L-Lady Teresa…" He breathed in a conflicted voice.

"Stand down." Velvet warned coldly. "Or I'll devour you piece by piece."

"Come on, Teresa!" Leo urged frantically. "This has gone too damn far!"

He let out a gasp as he registered a form walking over to the exorcist. Evidently Oscar had regained consciousness and was now stumping towards his sister.

His corrupted, daemon sister.

"No, don't look at me… I'm so… hideous…"

Oscar's voice was soft as he whispered quietly to his sister. His love for his sister was genuine. There was no denying the emotion in these rational exorcists. Leo's eyes glanced briefly at Velvet, watching the entire ordeal with a rigid jaw. There was nothing but determination in her posture.

She didn't see the connection. She didn't see herself in Teresa.

Or, perhaps… she was forcing herself not to.

"…I could never thank you enough, my sister." He breathed, unaffected by the ugliness of her face.

Teresa wept openly. "O… Oscar…" She sobbed, leaning into the man's warm hand.

"Now… keep watching over me, Teresa. As long as you're looking after me…"

Leo's grip on his rifle tightened reluctantly.

The man stood up, turning around and facing the group, his cape twisting in the wind.

"…I can vanquish even the lord of daemons!" He declared, his eyes piercing Velvet's as he stood before his sister's unconscious body.

The group tensed, raising their weapons as the man's malak appeared beside him.

"Take a good look! This… is armatization!" He roared.

Leo watched with wide eyes as the man was engulfed in brilliant light, the malak besides him disappearing within him.

"GYEAAAAAAAAHH!" His screams echoed through the ruins, just like his sister's had.

With one final flash of brilliant holy white light, the mana engulfing the exorcist receded, leaving an angel in its wake. A one-eyed angel with wings of neon green.

"HERE I COME!" He roared, flying up into the air.

Leo swore, changing the ammo in his gun.

A finger of judgement pointed directly down at the group, including the Lord of Calamity he sought to destroy. "Pierce my enemies!" He roared. "And scorch them!"

Behind the man, a flock of flaming neon-green wings materialized, their tips aiming directly at the group.

"SYLPHID BLAZE!"

With the master's call, the blades of green shot forwards, raining blazing hellfire upon the group.

Velvet cursed. "SCATTER!" She screamed, sprinting forwards as the blades fell towards them.

"RUN!" Eizen yelled.

"Oh, fuck me!" Leo swore as he dove to the ground, flowers flying all around him as the storm broke.

CRASH! CRASH! CRASH!

The world devolved into a few meters around the man as the knives of burning wind slammed into the earth around him, sending dirt and mud everywhere. It was the equivalent of being bombarded by flaming artillery shells, each with the explosive force of a few pounds of gunpowder. And it was just luck whether or not he got hit by one.

Through the dirt and the grime on his face, Leo's eyes made out the scores of flaming projectiles in the sky soaring towards the ground, Oscar hovering high above them and orchestrating the chaos below; a vengeful angel destroying the unworthy.

And there was one wing falling directly towards him.

In a desperate bid for survival, the man jerked his rifle up.

"HOMING FIRE!" he cried.

CRACK!

Somewhere in the chaos, a wolf pup howled as he channeled mana into the bullet. Leo was helpless to do anything but watch and pray that this would work. Through the dirt and the nearby detonations, Leo's eyes found the red-tinged bullet as it curved with the weight of Hawk's mana towards the incoming blade. The two projectiles met in the air.

BOOM!

The explosive-tipped bullet detonated upon proximity to the heated blade of wind, successfully forcing the blade off-course and sending it towards Leo's right flank.

CRASH!

Leo was bodily flung by the detonation as it landed, his entire body feeling the heat. With a ragged crash, the man tumbled to a stop in the upturned mud, gasping for breath. All he could do was lie there, and hope that another stray projectile wouldn't land and kill him.

The explosions continued all around him as he lay there winded, his ears ringing.

"…eo! Leo!"

He gasped as a body fell on top of him, and a cool feeling began to spread throughout his body.

"Laphicet…?" He murmured weakly, cracking open his muddy eyes and gazing blearily up at the frantic malak.

And the incoming burning projectile falling towards him. His eyes widened. "Laphicet-!"

PING!

Leo gaped as a shield materialized behind the malak's back, completely deflecting the projectile and sending it hurtling towards the side. Dust sprang and plinked over their heads as the shield continued its vigilance, undaunted by the rain of death surrounding them.

"Hang in there, Leo!" Laphicet urged, his hands running quickly over Leo's body, sending tendrils of relief everywhere they went.

The man coughed. "He's so strong..." He cocked his rifle with effort. "Damnit, Teresa wasn't kidding."'

Laphicet didn't respond, his eyes moving everywhere as quickly as possible, taking in all the most damaged areas and saving the man's life. Burn marks that showed bone were laboriously worked on. Gashes in his legs were stitched together with mana. The ringing in his ears faded with a wave of the malak's practiced hand.

"Laphicet! Leo!" Eleanor yelled, sprinting through the carnage towards the two.

The healing malak looked anxiously over his shoulder and yelled, "Come over here, Eleanor! Hurry!"

With a yell, the exorcist slid her on her heels into the barrier just as another explosion engulfed it, the ends of her hair being singed by the flame. Absent-mindedly patting the flames out, Eleanor reported, "Oscar's Armatus is too strong! We have no chance of getting up to him up there in the air, and he doesn't look like he'll be running out of power any time soon!"

Another explosion lit the air.

"Are you alright Leo?!" Eleanor asked, her eyes full of worry.

"I'm fine. Thanks to Phi here." Leo grunted, deciding it was time to stop laying down and sat up with a groan, massaging his burnt but mostly healed right shoulder. "Thanks." He added as an aside. He turned his gaze up to the ball of green mana patrolling the area and firing with impunity at anything that moved in the smoke below. "…And I might have an idea for dealing with him." He announced.

"Hawk." He called out. With a ragged breath, a beaten and bruised Hawk appeared in a flash, sagging onto the ground with a whimper.

Leo gave his wolf a tender rub, being sure to avoid the bruises and burns in the fur. "I'm sorry about this buddy," he asked quietly, "but we're going to need to use the big one this time, alright?"

Despite his obvious pain, the tired malak gave his master a determined nod. There was nothing he wouldn't do for his master.

Eleanor shook her head in amazement. "And to think I once saw malakhim as emotionless tools…"

Laphicet nodded. "Yeah." He lowered his hands towards Hawk and gave him a quick burst of healing power. "We're not." He stated firmly.

Watching the three of them, Leo's fists curled determinedly.

"Alright." He got to his feet, his head dangerously close to the edge of Laphicet's shield. "Laphicet, when I say so, distract the man with a ranged arte. I'll do the rest." His eyes slid to the exorcist who also stood up. "Eleanor, find as many of the group members as you can. Be ready."

He smiled grimly as Eleanor responded with a sharp nod. "It's time to ground an angel." He stated, raising his rifle.

Outside the tiny protective shield, the bombardment continued relentlessly.

* * *

"It's only a matter of time!" Oscar yelled, soaring above the battleground and searching for prey. "Your sins will reveal themselves!" He maintained a constant rate of fire, suppressing the area.

His eyes narrowed as he perceived the tail end of a black coat within the dust. Sharply, he pointed his finger of judgement towards the area. Instantly, an additional legion of wind blades spawned and flew like a swarm of wasps, bombarding the area and causing the waters to shake for miles around.

"You people hurt my sister. Feel the wrath of my love." He announced coldly.

He didn't let up for a second and kept his orbit, keeping well above the dust clouds and sending blazing projectiles down at erratic intervals. The smell of burnt flowers filled the air.

The power of the Armatus was… intoxicating. Overwhelming, even. And extremely… satisfying. He was the angel of judgement. And those below were the sinners. It was almost as if he were a different being. This was nothing like the feeling he had when he had first performed an exorcist arte.

This… this was godly.

"Here's your justice!" The call rang out over the bombardment, barely audible. "Binding order!"

Suddenly, the air around him went dark as mana converged in his location. Oscar cursed, diving forward as the air behind him was suddenly engulfed in pressure, his ears popping in the altitude change as he dove into the dirt he himself had displaced.

His vision was obscured for a long while as he struggled to regain his momentum and bearings, his world one of dirt and flying white petals. He cursed, blinking the dirt out of his eyes as he flew blind.

Leo had acted the moment he heard Laphicet's cry. With deft movements, he had fired his gun up in the air, the detonation not even audible over the chaos.

POP!

A blazing hot red flare had flown up and hung in the air behind Oscar as he dove down to avoid Laphicet's arte. The signal to regroup, to reinforce. That done, Leo had cocked his rifle and raised it up in the air, waiting.

He exchanged a look with Hawk. They nodded. There was going to be no hesitation.

Far above their heads, the red flare flashed brilliantly in the stormy skies.

The moment the green angel resurfaced into the air and noticed the red flare, Leo yelled out. "OSCAR!" He stood clearly out in the open, directly underneath the burning red flare. "Why does it have to be like this?!" He roared.

The armatized exorcist hovered high in the air, his arms crossed in a position of superiority, his wings still at his sides, poised to rain death on the man. "Why?" He asked quietly, his voice echoing across the obscured meadow. "Because you support Velvet Crowe the Lord of Calamity, because you oppose Lord Artorius and his reason, because your vague, animalistic emotions are what will spell the end for the world. But most of all…"

His eyes hardened as he slowly raised a finger, aiming directly at the man. "…Because you helped hurt my sister." He stated. Plain and simple.

Leo nodded quietly. "I understand." He acknowledged.

In response, he lined his sights up on the flying man. The two former comrades froze in those positions, aiming their weapons towards one another.

"So, in the end... it's emotion that matters to you." Leo took a deep breath and glanced briefly at the wolf malak by his feet. "I feel the same way…" He met the man's gaze. "I was always a man of both worlds as well." He observed with a wry grin.

Oscar clicked his tongue. "Then you'll forgive me… for purging the world of you!"

With a roar, the exorcist spawned a mass of blades, hurtling at blinding speeds towards the single man.

"HAWK!" Leo roared urgently, sliding his finger into the trigger guard.

"DAWNBREAKER!"

The malak howled in response, exploding in mana.

Click.

BOOM!

A massive boom exploded in the air in front of Leo's firearm, the shockwave sending waves of pain down Leo's injured shoulder. A single bullet sliced its way through the fireball of the muzzle flare, trailing a shockingly bright tail of white-hot fire and flying directly towards the man whom was frozen in shock from the initial explosion.

BANG!

"GAAAAAHHH!"

With a massive crack, the round detonated directly on target, engulfing the man in a massive ball of dripping fire courtesy of Hawk's mana. His screams pierced the air, the green wings in the air faltering and disappearing all around him as his mind lost all sense of time and control.

Like a downed bird, the man fell back down to the earth limply, his wings now a dark, lifeless shade of dark green. With a crash, the man crumpled onto the grass, having barely had enough presence of mind to attempt to slow his descent at the last second.

"Agh!" His legs buckling underneath him, Leo collapsed backwards onto the ground, heaving in agony as he clutched his dislocated shoulder. His rifle lay in the flowers, its muzzle split in multiple pieces and the receiver cracked from excess stress.

Utterly broken.

Hawk wavered on his feet before he too collapsed with a quiet whine next to his master.

Leo spat out blood before smirking humorlessly. "…You know, I think that was a bit stronger than I anticipated." He muttered.

Hawk gave out a vaguely reprimanding whine.

Leo gave the malak a tired rub on the head. "Hey, you did great, buddy. You've really grown strong." He cracked a grin. "Bet Eleanor's feeling super stupid for calling you a useless lesser malak, eh?"

A mild huff.

"Come on. Go and rest." He urged worriedly.

The exhausted malak needed no further urging and disappeared in a flash of green. Leo groaned in agony and struggled to his feet, blinking the tears from his eyes.

"You alright?" He blinked again, making out the worried face of the Lord of Calamity as she ran up to him, her eyes warily glancing at Oscar's prone form.

Leo hissed as he gingerly tapped his dislocated shoulder. "That's a silly question." He muttered dourly. "You know any healing spells or anything, perchance?"

Magilou made her presence known as she strolled up behind the two of them. "The old lady back in Loegres had the right idea, I think." She grinned.

Leo blinked and met the witch's gaze.

"Velvet's the embodiment of the naked blade." Magilou shrugged casually. "Last time I checked, blades can't heal wounds, can they?" Absent-mindedly, she raised her hands and spread mana into Leo's shoulder, eliciting a sigh of relief.

Velvet's eyes were cold. "No, they can't." She muttered dispassionately, looking away towards the fallen exorcist.

"Come on. Let's finish this." She urged as she walked off.

Leo exchanged glances with the witch before following, his arm having been reset in its socket. He glanced briefly down at the remains of his rifle before shrugging it off. He could always build another one.

"Oscar, stop!" Eleanor yelled as she approached the man. "This has gone far enough!"

Laphicet promptly ran over and stopped the woman from getting closer as the man struggled to his feet, heaving in agony.

"No… it hasn't." He blithely tore a hanging strip of his torn exorcist attire off his shoulder. "You… people hurt my sister!" He roared, his fists clenching.

With a roar, the man engulfed himself once again in more mana, forcing himself to receive every last drop of the malak's energy.

"He's losing control of the malak!" Rokurou warned as he ran over to the group's side.

Hot on his heels, Eizen cursed. "Damnit! It's turning into a dragon!"

Magilou urged, "Quick, Velvet! Devour that thing!"

Laphicet's eyes widened as he registered the witch's words. He ran towards Velvet desperately.

"STOP! HE'S STILL-!"

"PHI!" Velvet's cry frantic worry rang out.

To Leo, it happened all too quickly for him to register.

One moment Velvet was moving to intercept Oscar's vicious dive towards Laphicet.

The next moment Oscar was on the ground. Three massive gouges down the length of his spine, blood pouring out of them and painting the flowers bright red.

Dead.

Clawed to death by Calamity.

"N…no…"

Velvet gasped, her eyes trembling with emotion as she stared uncomprehendingly at the body at her feet. And at the blood dripping off her claw, being merrily consumed by the appendage.

The blood of a younger brother. The sin of a monster laid out for all to see.

The field of bloodied flowers was silent.

"You… killed him." Teresa's voice was absurdly level as she struggled to process the image. The bloody sight of the bloodied monster standing over the body of her beloved brother.

Velvet's terrified eyes met the other woman's.

Her reflection.

"No… no I…" She gasped in denial, her arms shaking as her daemon claw disappeared in a futile attempt to hide her true nature.

"He was a good kid." Tears slid down Teresa's corrupted cheeks. "He gave me this pair of earrings for my birthday…" She recounted. "They're family heirlooms that were supposed to go to his fiancée… But he didn't know that at the time…" She sobbed, staring at the pool of blood encircling her brother.

"I told him he should give them to the woman he cares most about in the world… And you know what he did?" She took in a shaky breath of air. "He smiled at me… and said  _I_ was that woman."

"So sweet… so innocent…" The tears fell like raindrops. "AND YOU TOOK HIM AWAY!"

There was no describing the emotions running through Velvet's expression. Of course, how could you?

There is no describing the feeling of seeing one's own reflection for the first time. And being horrified at what you see.

"YOU KILLED MY OSCAR!"

Leo fell harshly onto the floor, his fists clenched as the screams rose in the background. He didn't look up as Velvet screamed in agony, in denial, in despair. In self-loathing.

"How could you…"

He thought back to everything he had gone through with the group. Everything he had tried to do for Velvet.

"How could you!"

The times they had smiled, the times they had laughed, the times he had glimpsed that hint of his old friend buried underneath it all.

"HOW COULD YOU?!"

He didn't watch as the two charged, the squelch of Velvet's clawed arm as it extended and her screams piercing his ears.

The screams of an old friend. Whose demons were finally catching up to her.

He felt the empty air in his hands, desperately longing for the familiar weight of his gun, which laid shattered in the field of flowers.

Just like Teresa's younger brother. Another death at the hands of his friend, whom he had promised to help.

He felt… so… useless.

How could he stand against the monster she had become? How could he help someone who was so far lost? How could he break someone from her obsession?

He couldn't.

He had known Velvet was broken for the longest time. He just had deluded himself into thinking he could fix her.

In the end, there was no salvation for the lord of daemons.

"NO!" Laphicet's distant scream was futile. Leo knew it would be.

Velvet Crowe would do anything to accomplish her goals. She would destroy, and she would kill.

That was just the sort of daemon she was.

Who was he to try and change her? Just some random guy who didn't even belong in this world to begin with.

As Teresa Linares's dying screams rang through the air, Leo shut his eyes tiredly.

A black soul indeed.

In the distance, the older sister's lifeless body fell deceptively softly into the bed of blood-soaked flowers, her motionless hand perpetually grasping for her dead brother's.


	42. C40 - Eve

**Chapter 40 – Eve.**

The silent creaking of a ship in motion encompassed the man's night once more.

The canvas overhead flapped gently in the wind. The lanterns squeaked occasionally in their holders. The sailors whispered quietly in the night.

He liked this, didn't he? Travelling. Hopping worlds. Forward movement.

…Didn't he?

The lone traveler dangled his leg off the railing on the back of the ship. The same place where he had spoken with his friend so many times about nostalgic, happier times. The same place where he had tried so hard to be there for the woman and tried so hard to save her.

And where did that leave her now? Even worse off than before he came along, he was sure.

At least back then, she didn't look at him like she does now…

His mind turned back to that moment, that same moment he could not stop repeating in his mind.

* * *

"…Nowhere left."

She had muttered the words when she awoke from her dreams.

Her face had held many emotions.

Resignation.

Obsession.

Acceptance.

But most of all… Hatred.

Of herself.

She had pinned her spiteful existence on the account of one cause and one cause only.

Vengeance.

Her eyes had connected with Leo's just then.

And he knew right then in that moment, that she could see the disappointment in his eyes.

Leo knew just how lost she was.

And she did too.

All too well.

* * *

He sighed and reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out a single, normal-variety round. He held it up to glint in the moonlight.

"Quite an interesting contraption, yours."

Magilou's voice rang out quietly as she approached, her hat swaying in the wind.

"A bullet, a life." She observed. "A single piece of metal, a few dozen years down the drain in an instant." She walked around in a dainty circle. "It's quite efficient."

"A human life can be  _so_ easily taken. Even more so if you're a nasty daemon." She stopped and spun around curiously. "But if that's the case, then what makes the action of taking of a life so,  _so_ horribly uncomfortable sometimes, and not others?" She left the question hanging in the air.

Leo looked off to the distant starry horizon in thought, pondering the question.

"…Maybe it's just… like a clock."

Magilou blinked.

"It's what you do. Every day, you tick." He spun the bullet in his palm periodically like a clock hand. "Each tick is another person killed. Tick… tick… tick…" He silently mouthed.

"And then one day… something happens. Something goes wrong. And you stop ticking."

The bullet stopped.

"And in the end… you just can't just stay still after you've stopped. Because you've realized this entire time, all you've been has been a machine with a single defining feature. And if you take away that feature…" He trailed off.

Magilou finished, "…You lose meaning." She her mouth curved slightly. "And nobody wants that."

He closed his fist around the bullet, looking forwards.

"And in the end," he continued, "nothing changes." His eyes were sad. "The clock ticks on, in the same manner it's been doing. Until it runs itself into oblivion."

The wind blew in place of his words as he fell silent.

Magilou broke the silence. "…A quaint little metaphor." She muttered contemplatively. She hummed, looking up at the moon through the transparent canvas above.

"Now just how hard would it be to make that clock tick in the other direction?" She wondered, seemingly idly.

The man observed her thoughtful posture. "…Impossible, I'd say." He opened his palm and let the bullet come to a rest in the middle of his hand. "How do you change something's very nature? Clocks tick clockwise. That's all they do." The bullet shined in the moonlight.

"Who am I to try and change that?" He asked softly.

"…I suppose they do." Magilou muttered quietly, her eyes meeting Leo's.

Leo broke her gaze, spinning the bullet slowly in his fingers. "You're much more perceptive than you let on, you know that?" He glanced back at the witch who leaned her back against railing, watching him slyly. "It's quite surprising, really."

"Perception is the fault of the viewer, not the viewed." She observed smartly. She shrugged. "Besides. I consider myself a good gambler, that's all. Your presence in the game is quite important, I'd reckon."

Leo stopped playing with the bullet and met the witch's gaze. "How so?" He asked with narrowed eyebrows.

Magilou pushed herself off the railing to turn around and gaze out into the horizon. "Why, however would reverse a clock than with a clock worker?" She asked the air.

Leo shifted in his seat.

A bemused smirk appeared on her lips.

"Of course, fiddling with machines you aren't familiar with is always a dangerous endeavor." Her teeth glinted like fangs in the night.

"You never know when you might break it."

Leo's fist tightened over the bullet.

"Careful, Leo." Magilou whispered softly. "You've got your hands in the machine now. And it's getting mighty fragile."

With that word of advice, the witch sauntered off, humming quietly to herself.

* * *

"Leo?"

Laphicet called out hesitantly as he stepped into the main cabin of the Van Eltia, the setting sun framing the man leaning quietly on the bar across the room.

Laphicet made his way over to the man. "We're a day out from the prison island now. Velvet says to get ready." He reported.

The malak blinked when Leo didn't react and simply stayed there, leaning against the bar.

"Leo?" He prompted again.

Abruptly, the man let out a scoff.

"Say, Laphicet?" He asked quietly. "…Do you think I'm full of shit?"

Laphicet blinked. "U-uh…" He stammered.

Leo turned around unsteadily, leaning back on the bar for stability as he met the malak's gaze. "I… think… I think I'm full of shit." He admitted, hefting the glass of wine in his hand in self-loathing.

"L-Leo?" Laphicet's eyes were wide as he registered the half-empty wine bottle sitting on the bar behind the man. "How much have you…" He trailed off.

Leo paid him no mind and instead shoved himself drunkenly off the bar, stumbling over to the window where the sun was setting. "'I'll be there for you, Velvet.'" He quoted lightly. "'I'll be here to help, Velvet.'" He swayed side-to-side alongside the liquid in his glass. "'Oh, I'll try and help and old friend like you, Velvet.'"

He sighed, falling silent, swaying with the rocking of vessel.

Laphicet nervously fiddled with his hands. "Are you… okay Leo?"

SMASH!

Laphicet gasped as the wine glass Leo had been holding suddenly smashed violently against the window, splattering residual alcohol all over the image of the sunset.

Leo took in a shaky breath, holding up his bloodied left hand and staring at it. "I'm so full of shit." He muttered quietly, relishing the pain in his fingers. "I talked, and I talked, and I talked. And in the end… I was worthless." He muttered.

"She's lost. Forever."

His eyes were vacant. He squeezed his hand into a bloody fist and laughed humorlessly. "In the end, I couldn't do a damn thing. So… full… of shit." He muttered quietly.

Those eyes… those eyes terrified Laphicet.

They were the eyes of a man who had given up.

The man noticed Laphicet's worried gaze. "Do I scare you, Phi?" Leo asked quietly with a self-deprecating grin. "Am I going to lose you, too?" He questioned lightly.

Somehow, in the drunken fog of Leo's mind, the words of Laphicet's old master came to him. He quoted Teresa, "'Sometimes, you just have to say what you believe in your heart, even if you're not good at saying it.'"

He grinned humorlessly down at the boy. "Well, Laphicet? Go on." He urged softly. "Hate me." He ordered. "Yell at me. Curse me. Be true to yourself." He clenched the bloody fist, welcoming the pain. "I'm useless. I deserve it all. And more." He muttered quietly.

"I'm worthless."

And just like that, all the energy left the man and he slumped onto the bench underneath the window, defeated. Laphicet was speechless, watching the broken man framed in the blood red skies.

This was the true face of Leonex Davidson.

The silence returned, the chandelier hanging from the roof of the ship squeaking quietly.

Leo sighed and closed his eyes dejectedly, his drunken mind unearthing unwelcome memories. He broke the silence once again, looking unseeingly into the distance.

"…This pain I feel…" He whispered as he squeezed his left hand once more.

"…It's an old friend."

* * *

It had been sunset too, when it had happened all those years ago.

The skies had been just as bloody as they were now.

He still remembered the sound the gun had made, confined within the walls of his family home.

He remembered the horrified screams of the servants.

If he tried hard enough, he could hear it right now, still, even after all these years.

It was easier when he was drinking.

CRACK!

And the silence that followed.

It had been almost half a decade since his mother had lost to her despair and shot herself.

But even still, that feeling of helplessness still haunted him to this day.

* * *

"You don't scare me, Leo."

The boy's voice was calm as he interrupted the man's memories.

Leo gasped as the feeling of a malak's healing entered his veins, assuaging the wounds on his left hand and shocking him to his core. He whipped his head up in surprise at the boy who had stepped up to him and begun to heal him.

"You're no Velvet, that's for sure." Laphicet grinned quietly as he met the man's gaze.

Leo blinked uncomprehendingly in the face of the malak's supportive smile.

"…Why would you waste your effort on me?" Leo asked quietly as his wounds faded, the last drops of blood dripping onto the wood floor below.

Laphicet cocked his head. "It's just what feels right." He explained simply.

Leo blinked, speechless. "…What feels right, huh?" He muttered quietly.

"After all," Laphicet continued, "that's what it means to be alive."

Leo looked down at his healed hands, his mind awhirl with memories. "…That's right. Velvet taught you that, huh?" He met the malak's gaze.

The malak that was so full of life. Of hope. The malak that Velvet Crowe, the Lord of Calamity, had saved.

"She did." Laphicet nodded in determination. His eyes narrowed. "And if you think she's a lost cause…"

"That's fine." His fists curled. "But I won't!" He declared. His voice softened. "I'll never give up on Velvet. No matter how far she falls."

The man finished quietly, "Because that's just what feels right, yeah?"

Laphicet nodded firmly.

Far beyond the horizon, the sunlight began to fade.

Leo was silent for a bit.

"…Say, Phi?" He prompted.

"What's up, Leo?"

"…Could you leave me alone for a bit?" He requested softly. "I need to cool my head off for a bit…"

Laphicet glanced worriedly at the wine glass on the bar.

Leo followed his gaze. "Don't worry." He huffed, shaking his head. "I don't think I'll be running away anymore." He whispered. "At the very least. I think that ship has sailed."

Laphicet nodded slowly. "…Alright Leo." He stepped back. "I'll see you later." He wished.

Leo turned around and stared at the dark horizon. "…Yeah." He muttered.

With that, Laphicet turned around and left the man to his thoughts.

And his memories.

* * *

Trotting heavily up the steps, a slightly soberer Leo was surprised to find a woman wearing a white dress embroidered with the sigil of the abbey already at his usual nighttime brooding spot. Her eyes locked onto his and he instantly knew that she had been waiting for him.

He sighed and walked over in resignation, slumping on the railing besides her wordlessly, waiting for the lecture.

Surprisingly, none came. She simply stood there, studying him carefully.

A cold night breeze made its way into Leo's coat, making him shudder.

"Alright, that's getting a little creepy now." He muttered, breaking the silence.

Eleanor let out a hmph. "Laphicet told me about what happened." Her eyes were worried. "Are you okay, Leo?" She asked softly.

Leo shook his head. "Not in the slightest." He muttered dryly. "I think I'm going to hurl."

He grinned crudely at Eleanor's surprised "Oh."

He leaned his back onto the railing and looked down towards the empty shadowed deck. "Do you remember," he recounted quietly, "back when we first met, how lost I was?"

Eleanor's voice was quiet.

"…How could I not?"

He glanced over at the troubled woman hugging herself. "The look in your eyes…" Her gaze travelled up to meet Leo's. "Is the same one you had, back then, as well."

Leo sighed. "Well, you're not wrong." He muttered dryly. "Back then…" He raised his arm, looking at the gauntlet blade strapped to it. "I was so helpless. I felt like the universe hated me." He grunted. "I felt useless."

He muttered softly into the wind. "Such a waste of space."

Eleanor was silent. It hurt her deeply to see her friend so utterly broken. "I… had hoped I would never see that look on your face again." She admitted quietly.

Leo let out a humorless bark of laughter. "I'm afraid that's just not possible for me." He picked out a random bullet and started toying with it once more.

"I'm just a broken wanderer." He muttered. His fist curled over the bullet. "A useless, worthless, gutless piece of trash!"

The bullet made no sound as it disappeared into the void below, having been thrown overboard by the man in anger.

Eleanor was quiet as she watched the man heaving angrily in worry. "Leo…" she muttered.

Leo scoffed. "Don't even try, Eleanor. I'm not worth it." He closed his eyes. "I'm helpless. I'm useless. I'm just a useless, pathetic excuse for a human being." He muttered.

Her fists curled.

SMACK!

"GAH!" Leo grunted as he slammed drunkenly into the floor, the world spinning around him in a frenzy.

"Leonex Davidson, you will stop feeling sorry for yourself RIGHT THIS INSTANT!" His old teacher roared, pointing her spear at his neck.

Leo blinked the stars out of his eyes and stared up at her, dumbfounded.

"How dare you call yourself useless." She seethed. "Can't you see everything you've done?!"

She punched her chest. "You were my only friend in the Abbey! Nobody else even came close to being more that what I would consider a comrade in arms!" She shook her head. "You stayed with the group when Velvet won my duel, for my sake as well as hers! You made sure to let me know that you were still my friend, even after everything that had happened!"

Her spear glinted in the night. "I will  _NOT_ stand by and watch you tear yourself to pieces, wallowing in your own despair like some sort of pathetic coward!" Her eyes were wide with emotion. "Because you are my friend, and you are  _not_ going to dismiss yourself as worthless, godsdamnit!" She shouted, heaving heavily and shaking with emotion.

"SO, WAKE THE HELL UP!" She roared. "Are you not an exorcist?! Are you not my student?! Stand up straight and face the morning like a man!"

Her harsh orders echoed out over the water.

Leo blinked in pure shock as Eleanor began to shake and sob, her spear wavering. "Don't… don't be like this…" She whimpered to the floor.

Sobs racked her body.

It was like having a bucket of cold water dumped on his back. Her words… her trust in him… her feelings…

Eleanor Hume was trying to save him again.

Leo smirked humorlessly.

It would seem that history had a habit of repeating itself.

Far into the distance, the first hints of a sunrise began to appear over the horizon.

Eleanor stilled as a hand fell lightly on her shoulder. She looked up to see Leo meeting her eyes silently. He whispered quietly into the night.

"…Alright. …I'll try." He promised hesitantly. "…That's all I can offer."

Eleanor smiled tearfully, grasping the man's hand in response. "…I'll take what I can get." She muttered.

The man groaned, rubbing his shoulder. "Honestly. What the hell is it with you and jabbing at me with your spear?!" He groaned fondly. "Brings back memories."

The exorcist wiped the tears from her cheeks with a wet scoff. "I guess it's just your devilishly good looks." She observed wryly. "Can't help myself."

"Heh." Leo smiled back nostalgically and took a breath.

And then promptly sprinted over to the railing to puke his guts out as Eleanor watched in shock.

"Leo?!" The cry rang out over the deck of the Van Eltia as it sailed towards Titania. The sun began to rise in the distance.

A new dawn for a new day.

And the clock began to tick, once more.


	43. C41 - Siege

**Chapter 41 – Siege.**

Velvet knew she was dreaming. After all, she had devoured Teresa and Oscar.

Like the monster she was.

The unblinking eyes of the brother and sister stared lifelessly up at her. There were more, of course. She'd killed a lot more than just those two.

Oh, there were more pairs of eyes than she could count, all surrounding her in that field of white flowers. Fleeting emotions were frozen in all of their soulless, unmoving expressions. Fear, anger, dread, horror, terror, disgust. Their emotions were hues of suffering that together created an elaborate tapestry of misery wreathing the Lord of Calamity. Velvet just stared back at them all unaffectedly.

This was just who she was.

She turned around to face the others. One by one, she found their dead, unseeing eyes.

There was Phi, with three claw marks running down his back. There was Eleanor, her spear cracked and broken laying on her limp hands. There was Rokurou, impaled on his own Stormhowl. There was Eizen, with a hole through his gut. There was Magilou, lying dead with a twisted smile on her face.

And then then there was Leo at her feet. Clawed to death by the Lord of Calamity. Residual blood dripped off Velvet's claw and onto his lifeless face.

Velvet Crowe didn't blink as she quietly observed the bodies lying before her quietly.

It didn't matter.

None of it did.

All that mattered was the one-armed man standing across from her.

She raised her claw and stepped carelessly over the corpses of her group, towards her revenge.

This was who she is. This was all she ever will be.

A monster.

* * *

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

In the real world, Velvet Crowe, the Lord of Calamity, was startled awake by the ringing of an alarm bell. She instantly connected the dots.

They had arrived at Titania.

Her fists curled.

"Nowhere left." She mumbled softly as the cannons began to fire.

* * *

BOOM!

Leo cursed as the red timber surrounding him shook with the roar of the Van Eltia's cannon fire, jolting his aim and forcing him to reestablish his sight picture.

BOOM!

He swore again as another detonation occurred far below him, shaking the railing upon which his rifle was perched upon. High up on the front-most crow's nest of the actively bombarding pirate ship, the man was hard-pressed to maintain accurate fire on the rear docks of the prison island below.

He hissed in a breath and steadied his rifle with a steady hand pushing the barrel onto the railing, mentally accounting for wind and drop-off.

CRACK!

The sharp sound of his rifle discharge was paltry in comparison to the behemoth cannons being fired from the Van Eltia, but nonetheless was just as deadly.

BANG!

Leo nodded with satisfaction as he watched his target, an armatized exorcist carrying an azure bow, was sent flying by the explosive round that had detonated directly on top of him.

The man was surely dead. Leo cocked his rifle and picked another target. There was no holding back this time.

Everything was at stake in this battle.

Down below on the expansive rear docks of the prison, a massive brawl was taking place between daemons and exorcists. Explosions and yells resounded deafeningly throughout the docks. Both sides were fighting with everything they had.

The therions fought with their love for one another. The Abbey fought with their suicidal reason. Chaos reigned supreme.

"AROOOO!"

The giant two-headed Orthrus howled as he charged into a cluster of ranged exorcists, bowling them over and chomping fiercely down on them to the best of his very competent ability. On the back of the massive therion, Leo was relieved to spot an alive-and-well Kamoana hanging on for dear life. Evidently the cowardly dogs had grown to become magnificent, protective beasts.

Leo swiveled his rifle as the distant sound of hissing reached his ears. Quickly establishing a sight picture, the man bit his lip and fired.

CRACK!

A scream rang out over the cacophony before being promptly silenced by a vicious bite as the daemon Medissa tore out the exorcist's throat. The therionized snake lady glanced briefly up at Leo's perch to give him a grateful nod before she whipped around and thrust her tail an errant malakhim charging at her.

Having confirmed Medissa's relative safety, Leo's eyes were instead drawn upwards as a fierce caw pierced through the air.

The therion Griffin was a blur as he soared down with all the grace of a fighter jet dive-bombing the docks. Screams rang out as bodies were catapulted like dolls at terrifying velocity off the docks and into the cold waters below by the daemon's claws. Agilely avoiding retaliatory arrows of mana being sent his way, Griffin recovered as quickly as he could and climbed back into the cover of the clouds above, hiding himself from the eyes of the armatized exorcists.

Meanwhile, Leo's eyes were raking through the pulsating masses below for allies to help. He raised his rifle and muttered to the malak perched to his side, "Hawk. Homing fire. Danger close." The malak nodded in confirmation and tensed himself in preparation for the arte.

The moment Leo's finger slipped into the trigger guard, Hawk's mana erupted.

CRACK!

Like a missile, Leo's next explosive round curved directly onto its target with the aid of Hawk's mana, arcing at a 90-degree angle onto the exorcist who was currently overwhelming both Dyle and Kurogane at the same time.

BANG!

A bright flare formed as the exorcist was hit right on the top of the skull by an explosive round, blowing his brains out and splattering the daemons that had been attacking him.

"Goddamnit Leo!" Dyle roared angrily as he spat the blood out of his mouth. "That's disgusting!"

Kurogane roared, "You got blood inside my armor! You know how long that's going to take to wash out?!"

Leo rolled his eyes and reloaded his rifle. "You're welcome!" He hollered back at the two insufferable daemons as he worked.

Suddenly, a call went up from the ship.

"Leo!" Benwick roared urgently up to the crow's nest. "You've gotta get out of there! There's a battleship approaching, and I think there's an Armatus on board!"

Leo swore. "Coming!" He yelled over the boom of another explosion as the Van Eltia bombarded another choice area on the docks with its swivel cannons. As quickly as he could, he had Hawk return inside him and shouldered his rifle. He turned to grasp the rigging to climb down from his perch.

CRASH!

"OH FU-" Leo cried out as the mast supporting the crow's nest was pierced by an azure arrow from the fast approaching Abbey battleship. With a deafening crunch, the nest tilted forward alarmingly quickly.

"SHIIIIIT!" He roared as he abandoned the nest, diving forwards and away from the tumbling wood.

With a grunt, the man landed on the angled sails below, panicking as he grasped the frictionless canvas in vain to try and stop his fall as he slid quickly down to the deep waters below. With a splash, the splintered remains of the Van Eltia's crow's nest crashed down into said waters.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Leo swore again as the naval combat began with a vigor as the two ships entered a deadly dance, turning and weaving in as unpredictable patterns as was physically allowed by the construction of their respective vessels. Down below on the deck, Leo could see the crew scrambling around to reload the cannons and attend to the hull damage.

But he had bigger problems to worry about.

"AAAAHHHHH!" He screamed as he slid off the edge of the Van Eltia's sail, his legs and arms flailing wildly and vainly for any sort of handhold to save him as he plunged towards the waters dozens of meters below.

"OOOF!"

His fall was abruptly cut short by a flying brown blur whom had swooped in and caught him in a flash of feathers and malevolence.

Leo groaned and blinked the stars out of his head, clutching Griffin's feathers for dear life as the therion banked hard to avoid the fire of the armatized exorcist on the Abbey Battleship.

"T-Thanks for that, Grawky." He heaved.

"WHOA!" He yelled as the therion went into a dizzying spinning dive to avoid a blast of water mana streaming outwards from the armatized exorcist.

Leo glared at the exorcist whom was currently drawing his bow back for another attack at the front of the battleship. "Hey Grawky." He asked urgently, leaning in close to the therion's left ear. "Get me in close, would you?"

A questioning deep squawk came from the therion.

Leo's eyes narrowed determinedly. "We've gotta get rid of him, or he'll sink the Van Eltia."

Returning a fierce caw in response, Griffin promptly banked sharply up to the right, gaining altitude in preparation for a dive. A flash of blue blanketed Leo's vision for a moment as the exorcist's arrow missed the therion by mere inches as it climbed.

Wiping the moisture off his glasses as Griffin flew through the cloud layer, Leo summoned Hawk out onto the therion's back. "Hey mutt. You know what to do, right?" He asked his malak.

Hawk yowled something that was most likely along the lines of, "You're a damn maniac," or something like that.

Leo rolled his eyes in response. "Just do it." He ordered, cocking his rifle as he inserted fresh rounds in. "There's a load of treats in it for you if you do." He grinned slyly.

Hawk let out an astonished breath.

"Okay! LET'S DO THIS!" Leo yelled as Griffin dove back down, his ears popping from the sudden shift in altitude. Together, the two pierced the clouds and plummeted down to the sea, and the two battling wooden monsters.

Leo cursed. "INCOMING!" He warned urgently, clutching onto the therion's feathers as arrows of pure mana whizzed towards them by the dozens.

Griffin cawed fiercely, undeterred, and fell into an uncontrolled dive, whirling around and around with his wings tucked firmly underneath him in order to reduce his profile.

CRUNCH! CRUNCH! CRUNCH!

Leo winced as the therion cried out in anguish as numerous arrows made contact. "COME ON, GRAWKY! MAKE US PROUD!" He yelled in encouragement.

The therion cawed determinedly, pushing through the pain and spreading his wings with a massive flap, instantly killing off the initial momentum and making Leo almost black out from the extra G-force. All he could think about was maintaining his death-grip on Griffin's feathers and pray he didn't slip off.

He blinked the stars from his eyes for a few seconds before abruptly registering the Van Eltia's sails directly in front of him. "Oh Christ!" He yelped as he ducked a sail flying inches over his head as Griffin made a low pass, putting the Van Eltia right between him and the battleship.

Gathering his nerves, Leo steeled himself. "Okay. OKAY!"

With a brave cry, the man abandoned his handholds and used both hands to steady his rifle as Griffin banked hard to the right, passing right over the bow of the Van Eltia and bringing the Abbey battleship into full view.

He could see the astonished face of the armatized exorcist clear as day, as well as the rest of the gaping crewmembers, dozens of meters away from him.

"SUCK ON THIS!" He spat at them.

His finger slipped into the trigger guard.

"HOMING RAIN!"

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!

From the back of the flying therion, Leonex Davidson fired four homing explosive bullets at the enemy battleship, bombarding the entire deck and eliciting dozens of screams as fires broke out all across the vessel and as sailors tumbled from the deck and into the waters below. The armatized exorcist was hit directly by two homing bullets, obliterating him on the spot.

"HAHA!" He roared, quickly shouldering his rifle and latching onto Griffin's back as the therion banked sharply away from the flaming ship and towards the docks. "How's that?!" He yelled over his shoulder at the burning vessel.

"Leo!"

The man looked over his other shoulder and found Benwick roaring from the railing as as Griffin banked around past the Van Eltia.

"You're a crazy bastard!" The shipmate yelled over the wind.

Leo gave the man a shaky salute, thankfully gripping onto Griffin's feathers once more with his other hand. "You're fucking welcome!" He yelled back. He then gave Hawk a dramatic look. "Honestly. I swear, these pirates have no appreciation for what I do for them. It's not just every day that I hand out close air support, ya know?"

Hawk simply rolled his eyes, shaking in exhaustion.

Leo turned his gaze back to the battle raging on the docks. He reloaded his rifle sharply and gave Griffin a pat. "Set me down on the eastern edge, would ya Grawky?"

He received a caw in response. Leo readied himself.

When the waters below became stones, Leo quickly leapt off as Griffin touched down ever so briefly on the docks. Quickly as he could, the therion took flight once more, dodging some exorcist arrows in the process.

Instantly, Leo had his rifle up to his shoulder and his finger in the trigger guard.

CRA-CRACK! CRA-CRACK!

Two flaming scattershot rounds cut through the spirit malakhim charging the man, evaporating them on the spot. Leo swore and leapt to the side as an arte formed underneath him, resulting in a massive chunk of land being ripped apart and thrust upwards, spearing the air he was just occupying.

Recovering from his dive with a roll, Leo stopped in a crouch and fired.

CRA-CRACK! CRA-CRACK!

He swore as the earth-attuned armatized exorcist who had sent the arte promptly blocked the incendiary scattershot rounds with a slab of stone. With a burst of mana, the exorcist charged towards him, his stone fists held high.

"LEO!"

Rokurou roared as he leapt between the two combatants, forcing the armatized exorcist to take evasive maneuvers and abandon his charge. "Be careful! These armati are bad news!" He yelled over his shoulder as he charged the exorcist. "Stay back!"

Leo promptly he broke into a run away from the two fighters, replying, "Thanks Rokurou!" He slipped different bullets into his rifle and skidded to a stop to take in the nearby fights taking place. His eyes promptly landed on a trench coat wearing figure battling an earth armati.

"Eizen!" He shouted. "Crossfire left!"

"You got it!" Eizen yelled back, leaping to his right.

CRACK-CAK!

The piercing round tore straight through the earth armati's stone fists and into the man's shoulder, causing him to cry out in pain and stumble, his guard broken.

"You're wide open!" Eizen roared as he slammed his fist into the man's unprotected side. He glanced over at his ally as the exorcist fell. "Behind you!" He warned urgently.

Leo yelped and rolled out of the way as a beam of pure blue mana vaporized its way to him. "This is  _way_ too dangerous!" He complained as he returned fire with his rifle.

CRACK-CAK!

The piercing round impacted the exorcist right on the head, killing her instantly.

Leo abruptly registered a trio of earth armati simultaneously charging directly towards them. "Eizen?!" He said in alarm as he backed up and cocked his rifle.

"Not good!" Eizen cursed, slamming his fists together in preparation for an offensive arte.

BOOM!

Leo winced as the earth around him shook with the tremor of Orthrus's weight as the massive monster pounced out of nowhere and onto the three exorcists, knocking out two and tearing the third one apart between two heads. Blood sprayed everywhere as the man screamed in agony.

"Go Orthrus!" Kamoana cheered from on top the monster's back. "Get the bad guys!" She yelled with a supportive fist in the air.

Leo and Eizen exchanged a glance as the giant two-headed dog loped forwards, biting and tearing its way through the carnage. In the distance, the booms of the cannon fire between the Van Eltia and the Abbey battleship continued.

"…I think all this is a bad influence on her." Leo muttered as he caught his breath.

Eizen just shook his head. "Better than being locked up by the Abbey."

The rifleman shrugged, reloading his rifle. "I guess you have a point."

With that exchange over, the two separated. Eizen rushed forward to help Dyle and Kurogane while Leo turned towards the source of a familiar voice as she cut through a group of malakhim with fury in her eyes.

"Eleanor!" Leo barked. "Crossfire right!"

With a grunt, the woman leapt to her left and yelled back, "Done!"

CRACK-CAK!

The shot promptly cut directly through a malak, leaving it bleeding on the floor. Leo threw his rifle over his shoulder and extended his gauntlet blade, dodging a swipe of a charging lizard malak's sword.

"Hawk!" He ordered, crossing blades with his opponent. His muscles strained in vain to push back against the malak's incredible strength.

With a howl, his lesser malak sent a fireball to incinerate the malak, distracting it for just enough time to allow Leo to whip around and swing his sword straight through its neck, cleanly beheading it.

"Leo!" Eleanor yelled as she leapt back to his position, her bloody spear held high in preparation to fend off the rest of the malakhim.

Leo raised his sword as well. "Quite the day, huh?" He commented lightly.

"This is not the time," Eleanor yelled as she slashed her spear viciously, "for jokes!" She gracefully dodged an armored malak's spear to the side and in retaliation, jabbed her own spear through the cracks in the steel suit.

Leo grunted as he dove under a ghost malak and slashed upwards as it passed overhead. "I know!" He shot back. "I think Magilou's rubbing off on me!" He rolled forwards as a tree malak sprouted its razor-sharp roots from the ground he was just standing on. "Damn!" He cursed.

With a fierce cry, Eleanor pierced the offending tree malak from behind, killing it. She huffed as she extracted her weapon, exhaling with relief as she realized it was the last of the malaks in the vicinity.

She turned to the man, distraught. "Leo. The exorcists… They're…" She trailed off in disbelief.

Leo shook his head and raised his rifle as another armatized exorcist charged their way. "It's their damn reason." He muttered as he steadied his aim. "It's just how things are now, I'm afraid!"

CRACK-CAK!

The piercing round caught the armatized exorcist in the neck, killing him instantly. His body toppled forward and rolled lifelessly on the stones, leaving a trail of blood in its wake. With a burst of flame, the residual mana from the armatization arte incinerated the man's corpse in an instant.

Eleanor's spear shook as she gaped at where the man had just died right in front of her eyes.

Leo met her eyes seriously. "There's no two ways about it, Eleanor. They're committing suicide by using the armati; there's nothing we can do to save them." He gave her an encouraging knuckle to the shoulder. "But we can save the therions. Right?" He urged the distraught woman.

"R-right." With a deep breath, Eleanor Hume visibly steeled herself and met Leo's gaze determinedly. "…Let's go."

Leo nodded.

Together, they charged forwards towards the bulk of the fighting.

Overhead, Griffin's caw pierced the skies as he dove once more, his prey screaming in fear.

* * *

"I'm… the one you want."

Velvet's tired yet firm declaration echoed through the desecrated docks as she faced off against the lone squad leader of the armatized exorcists.

Heaving and sweating, Leo clutched an open wound on his abdomen and took a quick glance around the battlefield.

The squad leader was the only one left, it would seem. The battle had been hard and tough as nails, but somehow the group and the therions had managed to kill them all. In the distance, a damaged but still fully operational Van Eltia limped towards the docks, the defeated Abbey battleship sinking quietly behind it.

Behind an exhausted Velvet, the ragged group stood, the therions further back. The enemy squad leader stood tall, despite it all.

And above them all, the rain poured, mixing with the puddles of blood staining the stones.

"The Lord of Calamity." The leader breathed, rolling his shoulders and flexing the stone fists hovering by his sides.

Velvet's ragged voice was cold over the sound of the rain. "That… again?" She let out a rough exhale. "What a… melodramatic name." She coughed, spitting blood absently off to the side.

The leader's stance was rigid. "It's what you're called by the scores of citizens whose lives you've ruined." He clutched his hand into a fist, his stone fist following suit. "Now, face the enormity of your sins." He ordered.

"What idiocy." Velvet spat, breathing hard.

"I'll carve the weight of your sin from your flesh. Mark my words." The man breathed, readying his battle stance.

"Right…" With a squelch, Velvet's daemon claw sprang out from her arm.

Her eyes flickered strangely.

"Ugh… Kill..." She breathed manically under her breath as she staggered forward. "I have to kill…" She gasped.

Leo's eyes widened as she cried out in pain, clutching her head as the exorcist charged her.

 _She's gone insane!_ He thought.

"Velvet!" Laphicet cried out in alarm as he stepped out in front of her, shielding her body with his own as the exorcist flew forward, his stone fist of judgement raised high. Everyone else raised their weapons in preparation for a final clash.

"…GAAAAAHHHHH…!"

Everyone blinked as the exorcist suddenly began to shine with white light, his flight cut short as his mana ran out. "So, this is… how it… ends…" Like a flower being trodden on, the man simply went limp, his body rolling onto the sodden stones. Dead.

With a flash, the self-destruct arte concluded, erasing the man's body from existence and leaving only a puddle of blood on the stones behind.

Rokurou's swords went back into their sheathes. "…They all knew." He muttered quietly. "They knew that by using armatization, they would be destroying themselves."

Magilou shrugged, rolling her injured arm. "Just as I expected." She grinned slyly. "So says reason, no?"

By Leo's side, Eleanor took in a shaky breath, staring at the lifeless man. "They know… All of them. They know exactly what they're doing…" She shook her head, still clearly trying to reconcile the facts with what she thought she knew about her former comrades.

Movement caught Leo's eye. He turned around and Velvet shaking her head fiercely, forcing the fatigue away with a vicious push. The clearly exhausted woman turned to the assembled therions. "…All of you. Get ready to board the Van Eltia." She nodded at the ship approaching behind them. "We'll keep an eye out."

Medissa nodded her head. "Will do." With that she turned to the rest of the rest of the therions and began herding them over.

Kurogane stepped forward. "Rokurou. Take this." He offered a wrapped blade to the man.

The daemon blinked. "Is this…?" He asked.

"Yes." Kurogane gave the man the sword to inspect. "Stormquell. I made it with the orichalcum you gave me."

Rokurou muttered quietly, "You actually did it…"

"You will find no harder sword in all the world." The daemon promised.

"…I'll use it well, Kurogane." He promised, sliding the sword into his sheath on his back. Satisfied, Kurogane turned away and followed the rest of the daemons and therions to the edge of the docks.

"Come on." Velvet interjected roughly, turning away. "We've got to keep an eye out for more."

"An eye out, huh?" Magilou interrupted wryly. Velvet met her gaze as she continued, "You really think we can handle another squad of armatized exorcists?" She gestured meaningfully to the ragged state of the group. "We barely survived this little scrap, even with the help of all the therions."

Velvet's gaze was hard. "Stay behind. I don't care." She dismissed, turning roughly away.

"Ngh!" Everyone blinked as the woman once again clutched at her forehead in fatigue, staggering forwards.

CLINK.

Leo blinked as Velvet's amber comb clattered to the wet stones, its pristine surface instantly marred by grime and dirt as the rain assaulted it.

The comb that Laphi had given Velvet.

Laphicet reached for it.

"DON'T TOUCH THAT!"

Instantly, as if possessed, Velvet cut through all the pain she was feeling and flung a hand in-between Laphicet and the comb on the ground. The malak's eyes were startled and wide in the face of the woman's borderline crazed expression.

His mouth worked soundlessly as the woman quickly swiped the comb from the grime, wiping it off on her black coat and breathing hard.

He found his voice. "You don't have to do this alone. We're all in this together." Laphicet assured her. "And I promise…" He took a determined step forward. "I promise I'll protect you, Velvet. No matter what!"

Leo watched the scene from afar, his hand absently playing with a stray bullet.

 _What feels right… huh?_  He thought.

"…Long ago… Laphi said he'd protect me too." Velvet muttered quietly, her eyes drawn slowly to the comb in her hands. She caressed the object gently with her thumbs.

"…But that sort of idealistic drivel will kill you." She spat.

Leo blinked.

"Make your worthless promises. They won't change reality." She hissed, staring more and more intently at the comb. "Look what happened to Laphi." She whispered. "Dead. Murdered!"

The rain poured all around them.

"And I…" She breathed. "I couldn't protect him either. In the end… no matter how much he cared for me… My only brother, he…"

Her voice wavered. "His life torn away from him… How it must have hurt…"

Leo shook his head sadly and cocked his rifle, feeding more bullets in as he turned on his heel away from the scene towards the entrance to the docks, alone. His thoughts turned to the conversation he had with Magilou.

A clock that could not stop ticking. He smirked humorlessly. How fitting.

The rain blanketed the man as he moved aimlessly forward, his mind awash with helplessness.

* * *

"Velvet!"

Velvet turned around in surprise as Prince Percival came jogging through the rain towards the group in a panic. "There's something you need to know!" The prince gasped, catching his breath

"What is it?"

The prince caught his breath. "Lord Artorius and his forces are on the island!" He gasped.

"What?!" Eleanor gasped.

Eizen narrowed his eyes. "How do you know?"

"I happened across a dying exorcist." The prince explained. "We must leave, as soon as possible."

The group exchanged looks.

Velvet's fist clenched. "Artorius…!"

Eizen's glare was sharp. "If you want to die, do it alone. We need to leave with the therions,  _now_."

"FIRST MATE!"

Everyone looked over as Benwick jogged over frantically. "It's bad! We've got an entire flotilla converging on our location! The Van Eltia has already sustained too much damage from that battleship; we need to go!" He urged.

Magilou slumped. "Well! Isn't everything turning up just sunshine and daisies for us today!"

Rokurou commented dryly, "Well, we  _are_ going up against the whole world. Makes sense, if you think about it."

"…Alright." Velvet nodded sharply. "To the Van Eltia, everyone! We're leaving!"

"BIEEEN! THINGS ARE VERY BAD-BAD!"

Laphicet blinked in shock as Bienfu's cries rang out of the prison. "Bienfu?!" He asked.

"We've got more exorcists headed our way! It's a whole squad!" Bienfu cried breathlessly as he tumbled through the doors and into the open rain pouring onto the docks.

Everyone cursed. Velvet's eyes instantly flew to the Van Eltia, all prepped and ready to set sail. Then her eyes returned to the prison. Leo could see the cogs turning in her head. He instantly knew what she was thinking of right then and there.

He swore under his breath.

She charged forwards into the rain and towards the prison. "Benwick!" She cried. "Forget me! Take the Van Eltia and leave, now!" She ordered.

"You're crazy!" He yelled. "What do you think you're doing?!"

"If I don't take them down, they'll sink you from afar!"

"Damn." Eizen cursed, recognizing the validity of the woman's words. "Raise anchor! Come on! We'll make it through somehow."

The group charged after the woman.

"Aye, aye! But don't you die, you hear me?!" Benwick cried as he turned tail and fled back the way he came.

"We're not going to die." Velvet uttered to the group as they ran together as one away from the rain and into the darkness of the prison. "…We're going to kill

Leo's grip tightened on his rifle in response. This wasn't good.

The group ran forwards, headlong into the prison.

* * *

"You're running?"

_That voice!_

Velvet whirled around with a gasp, completely forgetting about the gates to the front docks. Her wide eyes zeroed in on the two figures strolling into the raised walkway of the chamber.

Leo's eyes narrowed as he took in the calm eyes of the Shepherd. Their eyes met.

Eleanor gasped. "It's Lord Artorius and…!"

"SHIGURE!"

Rokurou roared as he charged forward, ripping the Orichalcum blade from his sheath.

Laphicet grasped onto Velvet's arm as she charged forward as well, her breath ragged as her target was finally,  _finally_ within her grasp.

"No! Stop!" Laphicet pleaded as he tugged desperately at the woman's hand.

Leo watched the malak struggle in vain to try and convince her to stop. His heart dropped.

Prince Percival stepped forward pleadingly. "Please, Velvet. Remember the plan. Now is the time to negotiate for safe passage…!"

"Step back, Your Highness." Artorius's level voice rang out through the chamber. His eyes were cold and calculating as they met Velvet's.

"The girl before you wants nothing other than to kill me."

 _An apt observation_ , Leo thought sourly.

"You better believe it! Get off!" Velvet screamed, roughly jerking Laphicet off and charging forward with all the self-control of a wounded beast.

Leo caught Laphicet soundly in his arms as the malak fell backwards, helplessly watching as Velvet met the charge of an armatized exorcist blocking her path of destruction. Leo met Laphicet's eyes wordlessly.

 _You tried_.  _I did too._ His gaze said.

Laphicet's eyes hardened.

"GET OFF ME!" He roared angrily, pushing himself out of Leo's grasp. "I have to help-!"

He stopped as Eizen's gloved hand fell tightly on his shoulder. "This is a trap." Eizen intoned, clutching the malak's shoulder. "We're leaving." He announced.

"Let me go! I have to save her!" Laphicet cried.

"That ain't gonna happen, kid." Eizen declared darkly. "Don't forget, you're my ticket outta here, too."

"Phi." Leo interrupted. He met the malak's frantic gaze with sad eyes. "…Go with him." He urged softly.

"There's nothing more you can do here." He muttered softly.

Laphicet stared at Leo's eyes. Those eyes… of someone who had given up.

Velvet's crazed screams tore through the air once more.

"…NO!" Laphicet cried, slamming his fist into Eizen's stomach and glaring at Leo. "I man my own ship." He declared. "I'm not your tool, Eizen! And I'll do what I want to, Leo." He glared at both of them heatedly. "Try to stop me, and I'll take you down. Both of you, if need be!" He roared.

With that, the malak turned and ran off to help his friend.

Leo could do nothing more but stare in a strange mix of awe and helplessness. How the boy could stand at her side… even now.

It was… impossible.

By his side, Magilou intoned a comment for his ears only.

"Hmm…" Magilou hummed quietly. "Now there's a boy who knows what he wants."

Leo's jaw was rigid in response.

As the rest of the group charged forward to help Velvet, he stood there alone, rife with indecision.

"…The one to face Velvet will be Innominat."

Artorius's voice pierced Leo's indecision. He glanced up in shock as a humming tore through the air, seeing a massive golden arte circle forming in front of the group.

…BOOM!

With a blinding blast of holy light, the arte circle dissipated. Leaving an Empyrean in its wake.

An Empyrean with a hauntingly familiar face.

Leo's rifle fell limply to his side in shock.

Velvet Crowe froze in denial, disbelief, and horror.

"…Hello sister."

_No… no this can't…_

A small smile. "Did you miss me?"

So asked Innominat, the fifth Empyrean. The god with the face of Laphicet Crowe.

"Laphi…?!"

"That's right."

Even the voice was so shockingly familiar.

The god began to levitate forwards. "I am Laphicet Crowe." He declared. "…And more. I am also Empyrean Innominat, the Suppressor."

"N-no… that's… I-Innominat?!" Velvet breathed shakily, her body trembling as the shock set in.

Her daemon claw sprang out suddenly. "This is just… just another illusion!" She roared forcefully, charging forward.

But it couldn't be. There was no way.

"I'll devour all of you!"

His mind clouded with emotions, Leo began to walk forwards, his rifle limp at his side, as the group began to trade blows with the empyrean wearing Laphicet Crowe's face.

Shigure's voice reached him as he approached the fighting group. "Sorry to burst your bubble, but you were a wee bit late!" The legate called out lightly. "It was never about the amount of malevolence the therions devoured. What we needed to awaken him…"

Artorius finished the man's sentence. "…was eight different 'types.'" He explained precisely.

"Greed, conceit, lust, cowardice, selfishness, obsession…" He shifted to the side. "Those six Innominat had already obtained by the time you managed to tear the therions away. That leaves…"

"…just the two that Velvet carries inside her."

Leo's eyes widened.

"Once Innominat has them… he will fully awaken." The Shepherd explained.

The Empyrean wearing Laphi's face was callous in his observation. "And I don't even need an earthpulse for that."

Velvet was still, her eyes unseeing and her body unmoving.

"…I can eat them right here." Innominat raised his left hand towards the motionless woman.

Towards his sister's head, seeking to consume her.

_No!_

Leo's grip on his rifle tightened as he took a step forward.

"Like hell you will!" Rokurou's yell rang out as he charged, battling Innominat with his orichalcum sword.

CLANG!

"What?!" Rokurou choked out as he stared uncomprehendingly at the broken sword in his hands.

"If you're that weak, stay out of my way." Innominat's voice was callous as he dismissed the groaning daemon.

Leo took another quiet step forward.

"…Laphi?" Leo's voice was soft.

The…  _thing_  in front of him took in his appearance with a raised eyebrow.

"Ah. The coward." Innominat smirked.

Leo blinked in shock. "W-What?!" He gasped.

With a derisive laugh, Innominat dismissed him. "You're not worth my time, Leo." His golden eyes pierced the man's.

"Why don't you run off, like you always do?" The god mocked, turning away from the man.

There was something about those words that unhinged something deep inside of Leonex Davidson.

SHINK.

Velvet's sword rammed straight through the Empyrean's gut.

Nothing was right.

Velvet stumbled backwards, horrified and shaking in terror.

This wasn't Laphi. There was no way in hell this was Laphi.

"…Ow." Innominat muttered unaffectedly.

Laphi was dead.

"It's all… an illusion." Velvet's voice was horribly unstable.

Unlike Velvet, whom had turned into a therion, the Laphicet Crowe had died.

"That hurts, Velvet." Innominat whined in a child-like voice.

For good.

"Shut up, shut up, shut up, SHUT UP!" Velvet screamed desperately.

The thing hovering arrogantly in front of him now was just a foul bastard looking to emotionally damage his friend.

"Are you going to kill me, sister?" Innominat's voice trembled with mock fear.

The woman whom he should've been loving as a sister.

"Ngh…!" Velvet cried. "Go away! Go away! Go away! GO AWAYYYY!" She screamed, slashing wildly at the boy.

Oh, how he wanted to punch that little brat in the fucking face.

"…Velvet, it was always so hard for me." Innominat's eyes closed in memory. "I was so frail. All I did was cause you trouble… Is that why…?" His eyes opened sadly. "Is that why you wanted me to go away…?" Innominat pleaded.

And just like that, the dam broke.

With a cry, the anguished older sister embraced the white angel. "I never wanted you to go! I wanted you to live... I wanted you to be by my side…" Velvet wept desperately. "But in the end, I couldn't protect you… All I could do was avenge you…!"

The tears flowed freely from the daemon's cheeks. "To get my vengeance, I… I devoured… I killed…" She cried; a confession of the highest order.

"Of course you did." Innominat's observation was calm.

Leo's fists clenched.

_That… that BASTARD…_

"I'm sorry… I'm sorry Laphi…!" Velvet held the boy out tenderly by the shoulders. "It hurt, didn't it…" Her hand caressed the Empyrean's cheek. "PHI!" She pleaded, whipping around to the malak standing behind her. "Heal him! Please!" She cried, tears in her eyes.

"B-but—But he's-!" Laphicet sputtered.

"It's Laphicet!" Velvet cried, whipping back to gaze tenderly at Innominat's form. "He's my brother!"

"But Velvet."

The words rang deafeningly loudly in the confines of the chamber.

"…I never wanted you to avenge me."

Velvet froze.

"I mean, it's that sort of selfish emotion that creates malevolence… That creates the daemons." The god observed lightly.

"W… what…?!" Velvet stammered, frozen with shock.

"…That's why I'm going to help Arthur." Innominat smiled benevolently. "We're going to make all the pain in the world go away."

"Including that hate… that ugly malevolence in you."

The words were like knives to Velvet's heart.

"…Ugly… Malevolence…?" She whispered uncomprehendingly.

Artorius's voice broke in.

"The awakened Innominat will suppress all negative emotions. He will remake humanity into beings free from sin." The Shepherd explained.

"It will be a peaceful world, free from pain."

"I'll make this world a safe place," Innominat proclaimed, "free from daemons. That has always been my dream." He smiled softly at Velvet. "Don't worry. My wounds will heal."

"…Once I have eaten you, sister."

All around them, the floor was suddenly engulfed in a black, black void; a giant maw, sucking them in.

_No. No. NO!_

With a snarl of fury, Leo kicked and shoved as hard as he could, raging against the boundless force tugging at his being.

"YOU LITTLE BASTARD!" He howled in boundless rage towards the bastard hurting his friend.

Innominat's gaze landed on him coldly.

"Don't worry." The god smiled softly. "I'll eat you too Leo, regardless of how you feel about it. All malevolence will be mine to eradicate, in the end."

Leo's fists curled helplessly as his limbs were manipulated against his will by the thrumming forces of the maw consuming him. "You-!" He snarled viciously.

"Wait…!"

Velvet's pleading, desperate voice cried out. "I always…" She grunted as she struggled against the arte. "Everything I did, I did for you…" she gasped. "How could you… do this to…"

"…Thank you." Innominat uttered tenderly. Hovering before the souls fit to be devoured, he explained, "It's because of what you've done that I need to make amends. You've hurt so many people… and all for nothing."

"You can't… Laphi…!" Velvet's mewling voice was weak and defeated, grating on Leo's ears.

Leo opened his mouth, reaching out towards the hopelessly broken woman's form, in a vain attempt to help her.

"VELVET!" Laphicet's cry rang out as the malak formed a shield around the group just in time to block Innominat's teeth forming around them with an earth-shattering crash.

And just like that, Leo's world went dark, the blood rushing to his head.

As he fell, all he could think of was that little bastard. The one tormenting his friend.

That fucker...

That…

Innominat…

…Velvet…

The darkness closed in all around him and suffocated him.

BEEP!

BEEP!

BEEP!

Leo's eyes blinked open in surprise just for a few seconds longer before he fully lost consciousness.

And he saw it.

A blinking virtual indicator in the corner of his darkened vision, flashing over and over again. An indicator of success.

999.99%.

"Notice. Device charge complete. Notification code: 0203."

Somehow, the Device had charged to max capacity. The Wanderer of Worlds could move on. And with that final thought in his head, Leonex Davidson fell into the void, fully unconscious.

**End of Part 7 – The Lord of Calamity.**


	44. C42 - Reason

**Chapter 42 – Reason.**

"Hey dad?"

Leo's teenage voice rang out through the quiet laboratory as he stepped inside, the door beeping as it locked automatically behind him. His eyes widened in alarm as he took in the state of the room.

Everything had been utterly ransacked.

Drawers had been blatantly cast out of their housings, their contents spilling everywhere onto the laminated floor. Mad scribbles had been scrawled on the white boards hanging around the walls in the place of normally neat and nuanced diagrams. In the corner, the servers ran with their maximum load, the tiny electric fans struggling vainly to keep up with the excess heat.

At the end of the lab table, Leo's father sat at the edge of his stool, his eyes fixed on his laptop as he scribbled down notes incessantly, adding to the piles of papers already littering his workspace.

"…Dad?"

Leo's hesitant voice didn't seem to reach the man at all as he violently flipped a page in his notebook and scrawled furiously onto the next page.

Gingerly, the teen made his way through the rubbish on the floor towards his father and put a hand on his shoulder. There was no response at all to the touch. Leo sucked in a breath.

"DAD!" His shrill yell resounded throughout the lab.

With a jerk, the older man whipped his head to the side, his entire body trembling with energy.

"Who-?!" Leo's father gasped, his eyes taking an abnormally long time to focus on the image of his son standing there with a worried look on his face.

"Oh. My boy." The older man murmured. "What is it?" He asked in confusion.

"Dad?" Leo asked hesitantly, glancing at the mountains of scribbled work on the table and the calculation models on the laptop screen. "…What's going on?" He asked nervously.

With considerable effort, the father tore his mind from his work and swiveled the stool about to face his son. "Leo… My boy." He began, boundless excitement seeping into his expression. "I've come up with a brilliant idea!"

Leo blinked. "Does it… have to do with the Davidson Phenomenon?" He prompted hesitantly.

"Of course it does!" The older Davidson exclaimed as he suddenly leapt off the stool, proceeding to pace up and down the aisle heedless of the things he was stepping on. "I've come up with a machine, Leo! A device that could channel the power of the Phenomenon using the hypothesis we conjectured and manipulate it in order to project a human being between worlds!"

His eyes scared Leo.

"Think about it, Leo!" His father declared heatedly, slapping his hands on his son's shoulders. "A person could venture into a different world entirely! Think of what it could mean! A whole new frontier for mankind!"

The teenager gaped as he searched for words.

"…Wh-what the  _hell_  are you talking about?!" He exclaimed, pushing his father's hands off him. "The hypothesis is just that! A hypothesis!" He glanced around wildly, trying in vain to comprehend the surreal concept being presented to him. "We haven't even confirmed the existence of the other worlds, Dad!" He yelled. "Using such a machine on a  _human subject_  would be  _suicidal_ , no matter how much research you put into it!"

His father wasn't dissuaded in the least. "But if you had a volunteer," he argued, "who agreed to the experiment knowing full well the risks, then the benefits would be completely worth the sacrifice!"

Leo stared in shocked silence.

In the background, the whirling fans reached a new pitch as a particularly complex structure was rendered.

"…Who?" Leo stammered, completely lost and scared by his father's irrationality. "Who would possibly sign up for such an experiment?!"

His father's eyes went soft.

Comprehension dawned on Leo as he realized the full picture. And it was horrifying.

"No." Leo gasped. "Not you…!"

His father's eyes were sad.

"…I'm sick, son." He whispered. "Terminally sick."

The world cracked around Leo, falling apart. He stood there silently, gaping uncomprehendingly at his father. His beloved father.

The middle-aged man turned away, instead facing the research displayed on his laptop. "…The doctors say that I only have a handful of years left, give or a take." He stepped forward and leant heavily onto the desk, running his eyes placidly over the mathematical scribbles arrayed on its surface.

"All of this research… it's all I have left." He muttered, sitting back onto the stool with a quiet squeak. "That's all." He finished.

With stunned eyes, Leo glanced between his father and the diagrams of a strange-looking device on his laptop.

"No…" Leo breathed, quivering in blatant denial. "No…!"

His dad turned back to him quietly, a sad smile on his face. "…You can help me, if you'd like, my boy." His eyes were soft.

"It'll be just like old times."

Those words broke something deep inside of Leo. His father… was dying.

_No… No! This can't be happening!_

_This can't…_

With a ragged sob, the teen whirled away from his father and bashed his way through the door to the lab.

Running away.

As the heavy door slowly slid closed, Leo's father listened sadly as the boy's receding sobs tore through the hallway. The door closed and locked with a beep, returning the lab to silence.

He let out one last sigh.

And then the scientist turned back to the laptop and picked up his pen, scribbling once more.

* * *

Almost a decade later, a newlywed Leonex Davidson would enter the lab for the first time in years, only to find his aged father sitting on that exact same stool, slumped over his laptop.

Dead.

The screen would still be on as well, displaying a detailed diagram of a device that would never be completed.

…By Leo's father, at least.

* * *

…EP!

BEEP!

"Warning. Device capacity reached. Error code: 4402."

BEEP!

BEEP!

"Warning. Device capacity reached. Error code: 4402."

BEEP!

BEEP!

Leo groaned into the hard rock as he slowly awoke, registering each and every sense as they returned to him.

He was lying somewhere on ragged rocks, the points of stone jabbing uncomfortably into his body. The air smelt peculiar; it was permeated by a musky scent that made it seem as if he were in a cave of sorts. And yet there was light. So much so that he was blinded the first moment he cracked open his eyes. He groaned, wondering why the sunlight was so blue.

"Warning. Device capacity reached. Error code: 4402."

He blinked in surprise, wondering if his ears had tricked him as the augmented reality warning resounded in his skull.

With a grunt, the man sat up, sending a thought to the device in his head to see what the hell was happening. The moment he did so, the beeping blessedly came to a stop. He blinked in shock at the interface that appeared in response to his command.

…999.99%?!

_What the… fuck?!_

Instantly, the memories came back. The device charging as the void consumed him. The void that had been spawned by Innominat. Whom had had Laphi's face. Whom had been trying to eat-

"Velvet!" Leo gasped as he stood abruptly, groaning as the world around him shifted.

"Gah…!" He groaned, clutching his head and waited for the nausea to fade. "Where the hell…?" He muttered, shaking his head firmly and lowering his hand from his face.

The view that awaited him was otherworldly. If there was a purgatory, Leo figured this place would fit the bill nicely.

Floating rocks hovered above a sea of green, the sky above a dark, hazy blue. Pillars of neon energy rose and fell heedless of gravity. Massive rotating azure crystals spun endlessly in random points in the air, glistening in the mystic light emitting from the sea. The jagged landscape, if one could even call it that, went on for as far as the eye could see. All around him, the constant thrum of some strange being surrounded him. It was almost as if the very stones he stood on were alive, somehow.

"…An earthpulse, I'd bet." Leo concluded to himself.

Trying to regain his bearings, the man abruptly registered the lack of weight on his right shoulder. A quick look around at his feet revealed his rifle laying loyally on the floor besides his tattered notebook. Both items must have gotten loose during the fall.

He leant down to pick up the notebook first. In doing so, he accidentally opened it to a familiar page.

Cascading blonde hair. Warm brown eyes. The hint of a smile playing on her lips.

Once again, Leo's eyes were drawn to the augmented reality box hovering in his vision.

999.99%.

He could finally leave. Right now, if he wanted to.

Leonex Davidson could run away, once more.

Abruptly, a flash of green lit up the surrounding rocks as Hawk materialized in front of his master.

Leo glanced down at the malak with conflicted eyes. "Hey Hawk… glad to see you're okay." He greeted tenderly.

The malak nudged him with worry clear in his eyes.

Leo's gaze fell back onto the portrait of his wife held in his hands. He let out a hmph. "You can always see right through me, can't ya, you mutt." He muttered fondly, meeting the malak's eyes.

"…We can go now, Hawk." He whispered softly. "…Do you wanna go?"

The malak's eyes were wide.

"Yeah." Leo confirmed quietly with a nod. "It's charged. Overcharged, in fact." He explained. "Completely and utterly full of background radiation."

The malak cocked its head in confusion.

Leo shrugged at the implied question. "I have no idea why." He gazed out into the massive sea of neon green spanning the world beneath him. "But it has something to do with this place. But I have no idea why that is…" He trailed off, deep in thought.

Should he go?

Leo didn't know.

Suddenly, Hawk let out a warning snarl. Leo's eyes widened in alarm as he whipped around to discover massive armored daemon charging directly at him spear first. His eyes flew to his rifle laying on the ground in front of him. There was no time.

He shoved his notebook into his coat pocket and jerked his gauntlet blade upwards in preparation to fight for his life.

" **DEVOUR!"**

With a crunch, the daemon was ravaged by another monster. Over and over again the flaming red claw fell, pounding the daemon into the blood-stained rocks.

Velvet Crowe screamed hysterically as she devoured the daemon, blood splattering onto her face and tattered clothing. With a scrunch, the armored daemon disappeared into the therion's red claw.

Leo watched in shock as Velvet slowly straightened, residual blood dripping off her claw and body.

The unadulterated image of a crazed daemon.

"Kill… Kill… Murder… Slaughter…" Her hushed, mad ravings reached his ears. "…It was all for him… I killed for… him…"

Her breathing grew uneven and her eyes became unseeing as she abruptly froze in place.

"But…!" "But he said I was… ugly… Nothing… N-nothing… All for… nothing… I can't… I have to kill… Die… Die..."

Leo's eyes were wide with horror.

Velvet's mad mutterings continued eerily, echoing off the rocks and merging with the humming of the earthpulse.

Suddenly, Velvet's eyes violently latched onto Leo's hesitant form.

Instantly, a mad rage overtook her emotionless eyes. Her body tensed sharply. "Come on. We're leaving." She urged harshly. "I have to kill them."

Leo found his voice. "Velvet-" He began haltingly.

"IT'S JUST AN ILLUSION!" She roared abruptly, advancing menacingly towards Leo. "A FAKE! A TRICK!" She raised both her hands, as if it were obvious.

Behind Leo, Hawk began to growl warningly.

"Or… what if it was really him?"

"Then that means he betrayed me… doesn't it?" She asked quietly, her voice dramatically weaker in volume.

Her eyes narrowed evilly as she glared at Leo. "…You think I can't kill a traitor like him?" She asked. "Why?" She seethed, taking a step forward.

"WHY WOULDN'T I?!"

Leo gaped wordlessly as she stopped before him, her eyes consumed with rage.

"And just how many do you think I've killed, Leo…?" She breathed. "You, who WATCHED ME DO IT!" Her fist wrapped around Leo's coat as she violently tugged him towards her.

"ANSWER ME!"

Leo opened his mouth, but nothing came out. There was no collection of words that would accurately describe his horror just then.

"Tch!" With a careless toss, the vengeful therion threw the man to the side, walking heedlessly away without another word.

Hawk sent a hateful glare at the receding woman, whining in worry as he ran over to his winded master lying on the rocks next to his fallen rifle. Leo groaned as he picked himself up and stared uncomprehendingly after his friend. The friend who was walking away from him. Time slowed down as he gazed after her.

_You can't do anything for her._

It was always the same line of thought.

_She's gone. She's lost. Leave her._

The same hopelessness that drove his very existence.

 _You can go now, right? Well?! Go now!_.

The feeling of uselessness. Of self-loathing. Of doubt.

_You're leaving anyways. All of this is pointless in the end._

His mind flashed to all those times he ran away.

_Leave. Run away._

Aball. Velvet. Laphi.

_Run._

The Abbey. Eleanor.

_Run._

Home. Father. Mother. Martha.

_Run._

All of those times…

_RUN!_

All of that regret.

_RUN!_

* * *

All of a sudden, Phi's words rang out clearly over his doubts.

"Do what feels right, Leo." The boy had urged him. "After all, that's what it means to be alive."

Leonex Davidson's fists curled.

* * *

_**RUN!** _

With a fierce, wordless cry, Leo seized the rifle lying by his side. Without hesitating, the man jerked the weapon up to his shoulder and fired.

CRACK!

Velvet howled in agony as the anti-daemon bullet struck her, burrowing deep to her shoulder blade and rendering her right arm useless. Her body stumbled forwards in shock, a congealed mass of her blood splattering onto the stones below.

Deceptively slowly, the monster turned around.

Her eyes were trembling with rage as they met Leo's, his rifle still smoking from the discharge it had made.

"…You too?" She asked in a shaky voice.

The humming of the earthpulse made up the world around them.

Chink. Chink.

A spent cartridge plinked loudly onto the rocks below. Leo glared angrily back at his friend.

"Yeah." He agreed callously. "I've decided to betray you. Totally."

His body shifted, the tension in his legs preparing for a fight.

"I've actually been working for the Abbey this entire time." He announced casually. "Nobody knew! I've been their spy, working in the shadows to undermine the Lord of Calamity." He let out a scoff.

"Now." His eyes were dead serious as they pierced the crazed eyes of the woman standing across from him.

"Kill me." He ordered.

"W-what?!" The shaky and hysterical question escaped the shocked woman's lips.

Leo didn't move. "You heard me. Kill me." He ordered flatly.

Absently, his right hand slid into his jacket pocket and pulled out a fresh, lethal bullet, inserting it into the feed of the rifle with a loud click. "I'm here to kill you." He declared.

"So, you need to kill me to get your revenge." He cocked his head at the woman. "That's all that matters to you, right?"

With that, he raised his rifle once more, the raven-haired woman positioned directly in the middle of his sight picture.

"Now, DIE!" He roared.

CRACK!

It was instinctual. Velvet's daemon arm flew out and guarded against the incoming bullet. She cried out in pain as the malak-infused metal burrowed deep into the hot flesh, sending waves of pain down her arm.

 _He… He's hurting me._  She thought as she observed the blood oozing from her giant palm in shock.

 _He's… a betrayer._  She realized.

_He's another person to kill._

_To kill._

_**KILL!** _

With a crazed scream, the therion exploded into motion, charging forward as the man began to fire his second shot.

CRACK!

The sound of the rifle firing echoed through the empty Earthpulse. Velvet let out a feral howl as she leapt high into the air above the projectile, her eyes fixed fanatically onto her betrayer.

CRACK!

The woman side-stepped the next bullet which sliced off a few stray locks of raven hair as it missed her by inches. Her scream of fury rang out, piercing the quiet as she lunged for the man.

CRACK!

The rifle clicked loudly as the last bullet exited its round. Leo's eyes widened as his vision was enveloped with an alarming volatile shade of red.

CRUNCH!

"AGH!" Leo grunted in pain as his feet left the ground. His rifle clattered uselessly to the rocks below. The man winced in agony, his body in the clutches of the daemon. Utterly at the mercy of the unstable, damaged, Lord of Calamity.

The man stared down sadly at the crazed face of the daemon holding him captive; his friend.

She shook violently with indecision, her daemon claw shaking as she clutched the body of her ally. Her muttering was nearly incomprehensible. "I… I… I'll devour you… you… betrayer… just like… all of them…"

The pressure around his torso tightened unbearably with a squelch. Leo grunted, hacking out blood as the air in his lungs was involuntarily squeezed out.

He wheezed dryly, "You know Velvet…" He coughed, meeting her crazed eyes. "I-It's funny how things work out."

He gave the confused woman a wry, pained smile. "This is how we ran into each other that day on the Danann Highway, remember?" He let out a choked laugh of nostalgia.

Velvet's mind flashed back to all of it. She shook her head repeatedly.

"You…" she breathed. "You should have never followed me…" Blood veined down her right arm from the gunshot wound in her shoulder. "You should have forgotten about me." She whispered.

Leo scoffed abruptly, spitting blood to the side. He glared down at the woman holding him captive. "The same thing I said back then still applies, dipshit." His face softened as he intoned, "You're you, Velvet." He shook his head. "I'm still willing to bet my life on it. I told you. I don't mind giving you a wake-up bullet whenever you stray too far."

He grunted as the daemon claw clenched around his body, crushing the air out of his lungs.

Velvet shook her head violently and glared madly at the man. "I am NOT your old Velvet,  _DAMN YOU_!" She gnashed her teeth together in denial. "I am a MONSTER! I… I devour anything to fulfill my goals."

"My sister, my brother, even the world." Velvet's shoulders shook with pure emotion. "That's who I am. That's all I am." She whispered, glaring at the rocks below.

The declaration didn't faze Leo in the slightest.

"Prove it."

Velvet took a breath of surprise, her head shooting up to the man.

"Eat me." He ordered calmly.

She struggled for words, her mouth opening and closing soundlessly. Hopelessly lost.

"…W-What?"

Leo's eyes were hard. "A proper Lord of Calamity would kill and eat anyone and anything for her revenge, right?" He splayed his captive hands. "Go on then!" He urged. "I serve no purpose to further your cause! In fact, I just admitted I'm an Abbey spy, and I tried to kill you!"

"What other motivators do you need?! Come on!" He yelled into the silence.

There was no response.

"Well?! Devour me, Velvet!" Leo roared.

Silence.

"…"

The shimmering of the distant floating crystals and the ambient hum of the earthpulse took up the silence as the two stayed like that, staring each other down. One with a steel resolve, and the other floundering hopelessly in the dark.

Leo had made his bet. He was sticking with his guns.

He sighed abruptly. "I told you this once before, and I'll say it one more  _damn_ time to get it through that thick skull of yours." He glared angrily at the stubborn jackass holding him hostage.

"You've never convinced me you're a complete monster, Velvet. Never." He declared.

Velvet shook her head incomprehensibly. "No… I… I… kill… devour…" The words tumbling out of her mouth were nonsensical and obsessive.

Leo's fists curled. He wasn't getting to her.

No matter what, it would seem that Leonex Davidson would always be useless.

 _No. Not this time_.

He rallied mentally.

_I'm not losing you too!_

He opened his mouth to try his best to help the lost cause standing in front of him.

…And then his world went white.

* * *

Velvet Crowe was not amused.

Standing just outside the doorway of her brother's room with crossed arms, tapping her right index finger on her left bicep and glaring daggers at the occupants inside, the young woman was an image of fury; a dramatic contrast to her usual cheerful self.

"No way! A ship could never be built out of metal!" Laphicet's shout of disbelief echoed through the house.

"…"

"There's just no way! Take a tree log and take a cannon. Both circular objects of approximately the same dimensions. Drop them into the ocean and see which one floats. The density of the latter is just too dense to float compared to the former!"

"…"

"Well, actually Leo, I'll have you know that the human body can float just fine due to its light size and weight, relative to the water."

"…"

"Nu-uh!"

"…"

"Nu-uh!"

"…"

Velvet's eye twitched.

No. This would not do. This would not do  _at all_.

"Nu-uh!"

"…"

" _What. Are. You. Doing. Up?"_

"O-oh, h-hi there, Velvet! What's up?" Laphicet stuttered nervously, suddenly distinctly aware of the time of day judging by the darkness outside the window.

"'What's up' yourself,  _mister_.  _You_  should be in bed." Velvet growled. "And  _you,_ " Velvet turned her wrath to an empty point in space, "should NOT be bothering my sick brother this late."

"…"

"You've been having 'nuanced nautical discussions' for half the day now!" Velvet huffed sharply through her nose. "You've been here since lunch! I think Laphi will be perfectly happy mulling over everything you've talked about today.  _Unconscious_." The sister made a sidelong glare at her brother, who shivered in fear.

"…"

"OUT." Velvet narrowed her eyes in anger, pointing a single finger towards the door.

"…"

Laphicet burst into a fit of poorly-restrained snickers.  _"Totally!"_  Laphicet stage-whispered to himself.

Velvet's face darkened.

"…"

The properly pissed-off older sister promptly twisted some imaginary person's arm around its back and began marching resolutely to the door. "Bed. Now."

Gulping audibly, a thoroughly cowed Laphicet hid under his sheets as if his life depended on it.

…A flash of white.

* * *

Velvet looked at the map with interest over her porridge. "So… you two are planning a trip to Islegand?"

Laphi brightened. "No way, Velvet! Not just Islegand! Across the entirety of Midgand! Maybe even the whole world!"

Velvet chuckled. "That's crazy talk." She remarked dismissively. "Think about how far away all of it is! These things you two are talking about; snow, sand, far off continents. It's all looking to be just a tiny bit out of my depth!"

"…"

Velvet shook her head in exasperation. "The only thing I want to see right now is you two finishing your food before it gets cold. Now come on!" She urged. "Or I'll light a fire under  _you_!"

"…"

Laphi giggled, while Velvet let out a warning growl at an empty chair.

"…"

Velvet sighed and slapped a spot of empty air. "Come on, Leo. Honestly, I have to worry over you twice as much as I have to worry over Laphi!"

Laphi shook his head, eating his own porridge at a steady pace. "It's good, Velvet! You made it just right! Not too sweet, not too flavorless!"

Velvet smiled. "That's good to hear, Laphi! I'll make sure to write down this recipe then once we're done."

…A flash of white.

* * *

Velvet looked intrigued. "A land that's not on the map…" She parroted.

"…That's it?"

"..."

Velvet gave the spot of empty air a strange look. "…You're weird, you know that Leo?"

"…"

Velvet stared at the air for a good long while.

She abruptly gave a small tentative smile. "…Alright. I'll give you a chance, Leonex Davidson. If anything, just to give Laphi a friend to talk to about boats while he's sick."

She shook an imaginary hand.

"…"

Velvet looked on with wry amusement. "But you should probably go get your prickleboar. It's going to get maggots soon."

"…"

Velvet stood there, still holding a wad of netting in her hand, staring thoughtfully into the distance. She shook her head in wry exasperation.

Something about him just gave her a good feeling. She didn't know what.

…A flash of white.

* * *

Leo blinked as the visions ended as quickly as they had begun, the three floating bubbles of white dissipating back into the ground of the earthpulse.

_That… that was…?_

He blinked uncomprehendingly from his spot lying winded on the rocks.

"What was… that?"

Velvet's voice broke Leo out of his shock. He turned and looked up from his position on the ground to find the woman staring directly at him in confusion.

Leo breathed, "That was… Aball." The memories flooded his brain in nostalgia. "That was back then, when all of this hadn't happened." How he longed for those days.

"But…" Velvet began hesitantly, staring at the man. "Why… weren't… you there?"

That was a cause for concern. Evidently Velvet had seen the same things he did… and what they had seen was a full, true-to-life recording of the past.

Except he had been missing.

Everything else had been spot on, down to the orientation of the map on Velvet's table and the steam wafting off the freshly cooked porridge. Everyone and everything had been correct. Except, for all intents and purposes, Leonex Davidson didn't exist. Not in these memories.

And there was only one reason he could think of to explain that.

"…Leo?"

With a grunt, Leo found his feet and stood up shakily, coughing up blood and massaging his crushed shoulders as he did so. By his feet, Hawk whined, channeling mana into his master's broken body, healing him slowly. The dull glow of the healing arte framed the man's rigid expression as he stepped forward, staring out into the strange otherworldly sea.

Otherworldly, in more ways than one.

He glanced down at Hawk healing him and met the malak's gaze. His friend, who knew his deepest secrets.

His friend.

Acutely recognizing his master's line of thought, Hawk gave Leo a soft, encouraging nudge on the leg.

There was no ambiguity as to what the malak wanted him to do.

"Well…" Leo muttered contemplatively. "…I suppose it would get her attention, huh Hawk?"

Hawk gave a single nod.

"What?" Velvet's voice was rife with confusion.

And just like that, he made his decision.

He'd thought about it all. His desire to help Velvet. Eleanor and Laphicet's words. His temporary lease on this world. The indicator blinking in his vision. His wife Martha. His father. All of it. And he had decided that he wouldn't be running away anymore. Not from what he wanted to do.

He would do what felt  _right_  to him. Reason be damned.

"Velvet?" He asked softly. "Can you keep a secret from the others?"

She blinked.

Leo inclined his head and gazed up at the floating crystals shining like stars in the horizon. "…I never did tell you where I'm from… did I?"

He heard her breathing catch.

This was it. No going back. Leo sighed. "The place I'm from…" He grasped for a way to put it. "…It's a place that a person could never find, no matter how far he or she sailed this world." He met her wide gaze meaningfully.

" _This_  world." He emphasized quietly.

The humming of the earthpulse filled the shocked silence.

"… _This_  world?" Velvet parroted uncomprehendingly.

"I have a machine in my head." Leo pointed sharply at his temple, where the scars of a surgery still stayed to this very day. "It was designed by my father and myself, based off of my grandfather's secret research."

"Long story short…" He shook his head, preferring not to go into the details at the moment. "…There are infinitely different worlds out there." He explained concisely. "Each with their own quirks and qualities."

He shifted on his feet impassionedly. "Now, think of how that sounded to someone like me, a person who always,  _always_  loved to explore." He muttered.

His eyes grew distant. "I had thought that… that as long as I was exploring new lands… I would feel happy. That's why I didn't care if I couldn't go home once I had left." He glanced meaningfully at her. "I was never so wrong in my life."

The silence was incredulous. No stopping now.

In an abrupt shift of tone, the man threw his hands up in anger. "Can you  _imagine_  how lonely it would be to be marooned from everything you knew like that, Velvet?!"

"Can you imagine how utterly  _empty_  you'd feel?!" He took a step forward the words tumbling passionately out of his mouth, long overdue. "Can you imagine that?!" He yelled. "Can you imagine just how  _alone_ you would feel, knowing that you  _didn't and wouldn't ever belong_?!"

He gestured harshly to where the memory-bubble had surfaced.

"That's the only reason I can think of why I don't appear in that memory! Because I'm  _unnatural_." He shook his head. "I never belong anywhere I go."

"I'm just a Wanderer of Worlds. That's all."

He stopped for a breath as the emotions began to override his determination. He furiously swiped at the moisture in his eyes.

Velvet stared at him wordlessly.

This… This was his true self. The same person Velvet had seen that day when they had first gone hunting together alongside Lake Perniya. This was the true face of Leonex Davidson.

Despite the impossibility of what he was saying, Velvet did not doubt the raw emotion in those eyes. Emotion that spoke of a long and haunted existence. She didn't doubt his words. They explained so much about her friend.

It just fit. It fit perfectly.

"…Why tell me now?" She asked incredulously. "After all this time of keeping it a secret?"

There were no words that could describe Leo's relief at how steady her voice was compared to before.

He huffed softly.

"…When I came here," he recounted quietly, "I was nothing but a soulless husk, waiting for the next step in an endless path to oblivion." His eyes were haunted. "I didn't feel. I wasn't happy. I had no hope."

He glanced fondly at her. "But you… you made me  _feel_ as if I belonged. You and your brother did."

He shook his head quickly. "Even now, three years later, you and the rest of your little group of weirdos make me feel… content." He sighed. "I find that in the moment, whether you're punching me for a joke I made, whether we're glaring at Magilou for her stupid puns, or whether we're laughing together at Laphicet's innocence… I find that I don't care about any of it."

"I feel alive whenever I'm with you all." He breathed. "And it feels great."

He gave the woman a determined smile. "…Loneliness, isolation, and fear of goodbyes be damned." He took a step forward. "I'm not leaving a friend like this. It feels right to help you. That's all that matters."

"So, wake the  _hell_  up." He ordered roughly. "You're  _not_ alone, Velvet."

He grinned self-deprecatingly.

"If a cowardly Wanderer of Worlds like me is sticking around in this world for you, you'd better believe that you're not a monster." He finished softly.

"That's all there is to it." With that, it was done. She knew it all. She knew the full extent of her friend's dedication.

It would be up to her if it mattered at all.

The two figures stood there, with the full knowledge of each other's secrets. Two friends from a different age and different worlds, one utterly lost, the other desperately trying to find his way to reach her.

The shimmering crystals surrounding them continued to spin in place like floating clocks.

And then the silence was broken by a faraway yell.

"Velvet!"

The two of them whipped their gazes around to find Laphicet and Eleanor running up to them in the distance.

And just like that, the spell was broken. In Laphicet's face, Velvet saw Laphi. She saw Innominat. Her brother. Her betrayer.

Leo's sudden history… his stupid, stubborn, delusional trust in her… Everything he had just entrusted to her.

It didn't matter.

It DIDN'T.

She violently whipped away from Leo, storming forwards towards her revenge.

CLINK.

An amber comb slid on the rocks and stopped by Leo's feet.

"Velvet!" Leo shouted.

The woman stopped abruptly and looked over her shoulder, cold pity in her eyes.

"You're a fool for staying, Leonex Davidson." She muttered harshly. "If what you say is true… Leave." She ordered softly. "There's nothing here for you."

Her gaze drifted slowly away from the man. "…Your thoughts about me don't matter. None of you people matter." Her eyes narrowed. "I  _will_  achieve my  _goal_." She forced out, clenching her fist. "Nothing will stop me.  _Nothing_."

And with that, the woman whipped around and stomped forwards, towards her revenge. Away from the wanderer trying to help her.

Leo watched sadly as the woman wordlessly shouldered right past the astonished malak and exorcist running towards them and kept on going. Towards the only thing she knew. Back to madness.

A clock that he had failed to fix.

He sat on the nearby rocks with an exhausted groan.

At least she'd listened to him, if only for a while. He'd tried, at least. Now, he wouldn't have any regrets. It was up to her now to find her own answers. The only thing he could do would be to be there for her.

With a single shake of his head, he dismissed the blinking indicator in his vision.

The Wanderer of Worlds would be overstaying his welcome. There was no way he was running away anymore.

He groaned as a spike of pain lanced up his shoulder. Maybe he'd stay there for just a  _little_ while longer before being there for her, though. Hawk whined in distress and hopped up the stones beside him, continuing to heal his wounds.

Phi ran up hesitantly up to the man and picked up the comb on the floor. The one that Velvet had heartlessly abandoned. "Leo…?" Phi was torn between him and Velvet, her form receding into the foreign distance.

"Go." Leo urged softly, waving a hand. "I'll be right behind you guys. Don't let her go it alone."

Phi nodded quietly and turned towards Velvet's receding form.

"…Phi?"

The malak turned around.

"…You were right." Leo whispered. "Don't give up on her. You're her best bet."

Phi was reassuringly determined. "I told you. I'll never give up on Velvet." He promised.

Eleanor walked over with worried eyes. "Leo... what was that vision about? Why were you not…" She trailed off.

"That's not important right now." He waved them off, stretching his abused legs. "Go on, you two! I'll be right behind you guys."

"Come on, Eleanor!" Phi urged. "Velvet needs us!"

"Yes… she does." The praetor muttered. She met Leo's gaze. "…Okay. Stay safe."

"Of course." Leo promised softly.

With a final worried look at her friend, Eleanor turned away. With that, the two ran after the Lord of Calamity, leaving the man alone once again.

Leo watched them go, absently rubbing Hawk's fur. "…Well pup. Secret's out." He sighed. "I hope something got through to her."

Hawk whined questioningly.

Leo chuckled. "Yeah. I suppose I do feel better telling her."

Another whine.

"…Yeah. We're staying." He whispered.

With a self-deprecating huff, Leo chuckled. "I guess I really do make life too difficult for myself." He shrugged. "Who knew?"

Hawk rolled his eyes and went back to healing his idiot master.

With a sigh, Leo leant back on the cold rocks of the earthpulse and stared out into the strange horizon, a soft smile on his face.

He missed his dad.


	45. C43 - Interlude: The Bare Blade

**Chapter 43 – Interlude: The Bare Blade.**

"A weapon can't just be hard, you know." Shigure grinned.

"You get along so well." Tabatha commented lightly. "Is he your brother?"

"I wonder… Hmm…" Magilou dangled her legs from the rooftop.

"No, he wouldn't be, would he." The old woman observed.

The legate grinned, hefting the sheathed sword resting on his shoulder. "It's got to be flexible, too…"

"Just how deeply will the fangs of our would-be tragic heroine scar this broken world of ours?" The witch pondered into the night.

"After all… Your brother was murdered before your very eyes." Tabatha's words were cold.

Magilou sighed. "In the face of doom, still the crow caws defiantly…"

Velvet narrowed her eyes. "I ditched my scabbard long ago." She intoned quietly.

Tabatha nodded slowly in recognition. "So… you are the embodiment of a bare blade."

Magilou huffed softly. "You really know how to vex me."

Shigure's eyes narrowed. "…Or it'll snap."

* * *

SHINK!

With a roar, Velvet Crowe jerked her sword into a snake daemon's scales, eliciting a pained screech of agony. Blood squirted everywhere as the weapon was tugged out before a massive claw promptly engulfed the daemon with a disgusting squelch.

CRUNCH!

With an audible snap, the daemon fell limp, dangling from the outstretched claw that began to pulsate, sucking the life out of the corpse. The claw clenched into a fist, dripping with residual blood as the daemon disappeared from existence.

Just another living thing that had been devoured by the Lord of Calamity.

Eleanor and Laphicet exchanged looks of horror at the therion's sheer brutality. They watched together as Velvet slowly stood, her hair lifting from her back and her claw dissipating once more behind bandages.

"V-Velvet…" Laphicet whispered quietly.

Eleanor shook her head and put a soft hand on the malak's shoulder, wordless.

"Kill… Always… All… Devour…"

Together, they watched as the unstable woman walked on, ignoring the blood dripping from her face and mumbling incessantly.

Ceaselessly into the void.

And as she walked, the memories flooded in, unbidden.

* * *

"I know you've painted yourself in your mind as someone horrible, Velvet." He intoned softly, holding the woman's gaze. "And I won't lie and say that what you've done isn't utterly horrific."

He shook his head. "But at the same time, I know where you're coming from. Nobody else here does." He patted his chest meaningfully. "But I do. And take this from a person who knew you before you a daemon, okay?"

He gave a firm squeeze on her shoulder. "There is at least one person around you whom you've failed to convince that you deserve the label of monster, at least fully." He intoned. "I know that inside all this violence and anger, you're still you. That's why I'm still here."

He gave a pat on his friend's shoulder and let go, stepping backwards and giving her some space. His boots squelched noisily in the rain-filled silence.

He went on wryly, "I don't mind giving you a little wake-up bullet whenever you let yourself go a bit too far into the deep end, Velvet. Whenever you let yourself get too carried away in your role as evil monster, I'll be here to let you know. I'll be there to make sure you stay in in the light." He promised sincerely.

He gave an honest, wry smile. "That's what friends do, after all." He waved an uncaring hand in the air. "If you're going to hate me for it, go ahead."

* * *

"No…" Velvet muttered, shaking her head violently. "He's wrong… wrong…!"

Her steps moved mechanically, one at a time, towards oblivion.

"…Monster… I kill… I devour…" She whispered.

* * *

"I need you to quit brooding by yourself, Velvet. Or else."

"Or else what?" Velvet challenged, raising an eyebrow.

He smiled disarmingly. "Or I'll shoot you again."

"…You have a strange idea of friendship." Velvet muttered.

"Well, in my defense, you're always threating to eat me so…"

"…I guess you have a point." She shrugged. "Anyways, what I do is up to me, and no one else. Your concern is wasted on me." She reaffirmed once more, unyielding in her determination.

The two fell back into silence, watching as stars appeared in the sky, reflecting off the endless void of the ocean around them. The creaking of the ship, the muted whispers on the deck. All of it surrounded them and engulfed them in a different world.

"Nevertheless…" Velvet whispered. "…Thank you."

He smiled. "Anytime."

* * *

"NO!"

Velvet abruptly roared, startling the two people trailing behind her. "YOU'RE WRONG!"

With a ragged breath, she threw her right fist at the closest rock at full force.

CRACK!

"Agh!" She groaned, relishing the pain that followed from the broken fingers she had inflicted upon herself.

"VELVET!" Laphicet's cry was loud and irrelevant. As the healing mana of the malak's frantic artes began to sink in, Velvet shook her head angrily.

"Stop… stop it…" She muttered, clutching her head.

Somehow, Laphicet knew she wasn't referring to his healing.

Her mind whirled.

He was a traveler… from a different world…

Who  _trusted_  her.

Who  _believed_  in her.

Who had  _stayed_  for her!

…No.

 _He_ didn't matter.

All that mattered was-!

* * *

"I'm not apologizing, you know. For not telling you about the dream arte." He sighed, closing his eyes and savoring the ocean breeze.

"These people… these memories… the person you used to be…" He shook his head. "They're part of you, you know."

"The past can't be forgotten. Shouldn't be forgotten." He sighed, a distant look in his eyes. "I had fun, Velvet. While it lasted." He admitted quietly.

"Remembering who you were… it's a good thing. That's how I look at it."

He fiddled with his jacket absently. "I've made a lot of mistakes." He admitted. "Tons, actually. Sometimes I just feel like pointing my gun at my own head and pulling the trigger because of how much I hate what I've done."

He shrugged. "But when I do have thoughts like that… all I have to do is think back." His eyes were soft. "Think back to the good times. And remember that they aren't necessarily constrained to my past."

"Looking back is just a part of being alive." Leo stated firmly as he turned around to face the sea, his coat blowing in the wind.

"…Don't you go forgetting it, Velvet."

* * *

"SHUT UP, SHUT UP, SHUT UP!"

Her mad howls rent the air, resounding off the very stones.

"You're  _wrong_!"

In a mad rage, she conjured her daemon arm and clawed every inch of rock in front of her, sending sharp rocks flying everywhere.

"YOU'RE WRONG!"

Her face and her arms bled with each maddened impact, marred by razor-sharp shards of rocky debris.

"YOU'RE WRONG!" She screamed, slamming her entire claw onto the floor. The ground trembled under the sheer ferocity of the impact.

Huffing and panting, the woman once again welcomed the pain that flooded in as the adrenaline faded, her entire being on fire with agony.

"…elvet you've  _gotta stop_!"

She abruptly registered Laphicet's frantic attempts at healing the worst of the bruises and gashes on her body caused by her rampage.

"Velvet,  _please_!" Laphicet pleaded, his eyes wide and terrified.

Eleanor stepped forward and gripped her shoulders urgently. "You must calm down!" The exorcist beseeched desperately, shaking the therion in an attempt to snap her out of her dementia.

_Calm._

_Calm down?_

_How could she…_

_HOW COULD SHE?!_

Eleanor let out a scream of terror as she was enveloped in an instant by Velvet's horrifying daemon arm, her boots leaving the floor.

"VELVET?!" Eleanor screamed.

"NO!" Laphicet cried in horror.

With bulging, demented eyes, Velvet stared intensely at the woman wriggling in her grasp.

* * *

He choked out a weak laugh. "I always said so, didn't I?" He met Velvet's crazed, irrational,  _familiar_  eyes with a warm smile.

"You always were a real  _daemon_  when it came to your brother."

And just like that, all the rage fled in an instant.

No matter how hard she grasped, her insatiable rage, her old companion, her only constant in the last three years; all of a sudden was nowhere to be found. Here was a real fragment of the past, a person she had called a friend. A person whom had trusted her with his life and had almost become part of her family. A family she thought she'd lost forever.

That idiot was  _here_. And he  _still trusted her_. He  _knew her_. Who she… was? Who she… is?

In that moment of immobilizing,  _terrifying_  uncertainty, she didn't know what to think.

* * *

Eleanor yelped as she was abruptly dropped to the floor, utterly forgotten. Her eyes shook with fear as she gazed up at the monster that had assaulted her.

Yet, as if nothing had happened at all, Velvet simply turned around and kept on walking.

This time, however, she was simply silent. All emotion had been sucked out of her.

She was a quiet, vengeful wraith in the darkness.

"Eleanor!" Laphicet hurried up forward urgently and grasped Eleanor's shoulders in worry. "Are you alright?!" He asked, helping her up.

Eleanor shuddered as she managed to stumble to her feet. "I... I-I'm fine, Laphicet." She gasped, staring at the receding therion fearfully. "J-Just a little… s-shaken. That's all…" She mumbled.

Laphicet just shook his head helplessly.

"…Come on." He urged softly.

Steeling herself, Eleanor nodded.

Together, the two continued to follow the woman.

A flash of white engulfed them, stopping them in their tracks.

* * *

"…Laphi! Time to wake up!"


	46. C44 - Past

**Chapter 44 – Past.**

"Laphicet!" Eizen roared. "Tell this self-absorbed idiot what she needs to hear!" He strained his body, pulling Laphicet's leg from being sucked into Innominat's mouth.

With that prompt, Phi took a breath of pure frustration.

"WILL YOU STOP WHINING?!" He screamed.

Velvet's emotionless eyes leapt abruptly in shock.

"No, I don't understand!" Laphicet, straining to hold onto Velvet's bandaged hand, screamed at his idiot of a friend. "You snap at people! You're scary!" He swallowed hard. "You-you tried to eat me!"

Behind them, Rokurou held down Eleanor's light weight as best he could against the winds. Eizen grunted as he adjusted his holding arte on the ground, straining as he held onto Laphicet's leg.

Shielding himself from Innominat's wind behind an outcropping was Leo, watching the scene from afar with horror.

"But… you're also kind… And you're filled with life!" Laphicet screamed in frustration. "I don't understand a single think about you!"

"But you gave me a name, when I was a number! You gave me that compass! You taught me what it meant to be alive!"

Leo's mouth twitched into a smile. He always knew, of course. That kid got it. More than he ever did.

"That's why I care about you, Velvet! I'll protect you… for my own sake!" He shook his head wildly.

"I don't care if you're malevolent! Or if it was pointless! If the world says it's a mistake to love you, I'll fight the whole world!" He grunted, squeezing at the hand slipping through his fingers. "I don't care HOW much pain you feel! It doesn't matter! A world without you, Velvet…"

SQUELCH!

"GAAAAH!" Laphicet screamed as Velvet's daemon claw abruptly erupted and latched its fingers deeply into his arm.

"IS THE ONE THING I COULDN'T BEAR!"

"Let… let go Phi…!" Emotion was beginning to color Velvet's words once more. "I'll… I'll eat you…"

"Eat my arm! I don't care! Just… Leave me the other one." Laphicet's left hand curled up into a fist. "I need it to clobber the jerk who made my Velvet cry!" He roared.

Velvet squeezed her eyes shut.

Slowly, ever so slowly, her right hand moved for Laphicet's.

"I… I loved them all. I loved Laphi, and Celica… Arthur. Everyone… to have it stolen from me…" She screamed in pure emotion, "Why them? Why not me? It hurt  _so much_!"

With a howl, she latched onto Phi's offered hand.

"Y-Your despair?!" Innominat, the cruel bastard hovering and watching this sick display, suddenly exclaimed in dismay. "H-How is it all gone?!"

Abruptly, the world went white as Innominat's mouth cracked and vanished in a blinding flash.

Without hesitation, Leo shot up to his feet as the blistering vortex dissipated, blinking the brightness out of his eyes.

He stared at the sight that awaited him.

Velvet was back.

Sane, determined, and full of rage, with her daemon claw out and spewing  _fire_ at the earthpulse rift; the Velvet Crowe he knew was  _back_.

Innominat's screams rang out into the air as he was ravaged by the flames and thrown back, unconscious.

Leo stared at the furious woman, the brilliant flames framing her features in a terrifying light. Her long hair billowed alongside her coat from the force of the arte, her body rigid in focus.

A mad grin sprang onto Leo's face.

That bastard had actually done it.

_Phi had done it!_

Now  _THAT_ was what he was talking about!

"FUCK YEAH, VELVET!" He yelled out as he sprinted up the incline towards her, past the rest of the group still recovering from the blast.

"Leo?!" She gasped, registering the man with surprise. "I thought I told you to leave!" She yelled over the roaring of her arte.

Leo rolled his eyes and clicked the safety off on his rifle. "What?" He shouted back as he lifted his rifle. "And leave without winning my bet with Magilou?! Never!"

He shook his head in wry exasperation. "I told you, I'm sticking with you, whether you like it or not!" He grinned. "Get it through your thick head!"

Velvet gaped, lost for words.

"Hawk!" Leo roared. "DAWNBREAKER!"

With a savage howl, Hawk began the mystic arte. Leo slid his trigger finger in to the trigger guard.

Click.

BOOM!

With a massive roar, the rifle spat out copious amounts of raging fire and mana at odds with its small size. The fired explosive round roared through the rift, compounding the savage energy already flowing through it from Velvet's arte.

BANG!

The detonation on the other side violently widened the rift, revealing a completely different world on the other side. Velvet promptly cut off her arte and Leo cocked his rifle as Hawk returned utterly spent inside of him.

Leo whipped his head to the others in his group getting to their feet. "All of you!" He roared. "Let's fucking get out of here!"

Eizen was the first to get to his feet, nodding sharply. "Come on!" He yelled to the others.

Rokurou agreed, "You don't need to tell me twice!"

Laphicet nodded thankfully. "Nice job, guys!" His eyes were wide and happy, taking in Velvet's composed state.

Eleanor panted shakily, "About time you caught up with us, Leo!"

"Bah." Leo waved her off. "I was right behind you guys the whole time. You just walk too fast."

In response, his former teacher simply gave him an eye roll.

Together, the others all rushes towards the rift, away from Innominat and the miserable earthpulse, towards freedom.

Velvet let out a fantastically sane laugh that made Leo's heart sing. She smirked. "Your family, huh?"

Leo gave her a swat on the shoulder. " _Our_  family, dipshit."

Velvet gave a scoff in response.

"There it is." Leo grinned. "…It's really, really good to have you back, Velvet." He commented genuinely.

The woman turned to face him fully.

"Leo." She intoned seriously. "After everything you've said... Are you  _sure_ you want to stay?" She asked pointedly. "With me? Even after everything I've done? Everything I  _will_ do?"

"… _Jesus_ , lady."

This time, it was Leo's time to scoff.

"Man," he threw up his hands in mock annoyance, "I gave this whole great big heat-of-the-moment speech about how I feel alive when I'm with you guys, my crippling fear of goodbyes, my loneliness, and still you ask me that!  _Gosh_!"

He shifted on his feet. "I ran from you when I first met you." He recounted seriously. "I ran from you when I found you again. And… I still regret those choices still, even though the reasoning behind each of those acts still holds."

He shook his head. "I'm just not going to run anymore. If I did… I'd never forgive myself. I realize that now. Different world or not, temporary or not, monster or not… a friend is a friend."

He clapped a firm hand on her shoulder.

"And friends help each other out." He glared over his shoulder at Innominat's prone body. "Even if it means fighting psychopathic brothers."

Velvet followed his gaze with a hard look.

"…I... Thank you." She settled for those woefully inadequate words, meeting the man's gaze.

"I suppose I'd appreciate your help." She smiled in genuine gratitude.

Leo huffed. "Shut up." He scolded. "I'm just doing this for myself, not for charity you know. Just like that kid of yours." He grinned. "Just another selfish bastard in a group of self-serving pirates."

"Heh." Velvet's smile was honest. "Phi…" She mouthed tenderly.

Leo's expression was soft. "He's right, you know." He intoned.

"Everything he said, he said better than I ever could."

He shrugged. "You might be a 'monster'… but you're  _our '_ monster,' Velvet." He grinned. "Not that we consider you to be a monster, of course. You're family. That's all we care about."

"We're alive, right?" He prompted.

Velvet gave a smile. A genuine, happy smile. "Yes… We're… alive."

There was no greater, more rewarding feeling for Leo than seeing that smile on his friend's face. A friend who'd finally found her way.

None whatsoever.

Abruptly, the man coughed.

"ALTHOUGH," he drawled, "we're not going to stay that way if we keep chit-chatting here." He made a furtive glance to Innominat's form, hearing the worrying sounds of consciousness.

"Let's go, Velvet." He met her gaze. "Together."

Velvet nodded resolutely. "Well, come on then, 'Wanderer of Worlds.'" She gave a derisive scoff as she charged forwards. "Honestly, how melodramatic can you get?"

Leo sputtered indignantly at her back. "H-Hey!" He yelled as he followed hot on her heels. "It's a better title than 'Lord of Calamity!'"

"Heh." She grinned back despite herself.

As one, the two of them charged together at the rift. They leapt forward, away from the past and into the future. Leo smiled happily as the surroundings shifted around him and Velvet.

It would seem that he would be sticking around in this world for a bit longer yet.

Reason be damned, he was going to make something right in the time that he had. He had friends in this world, and he'd be damned if he wasn't going to see their stories to the end.

He was done running away.

With that final thought, the Wanderer of Worlds realized he had finally found the peace he had been searching for so long.

And it felt fucking great, thanks for asking.

* * *

"…No matter how hard… No matter how sad it gets…"

Velvet's voice was level and rife with determination. The howling of the air around them in the strange place they had exited the earthpulse from filled the brief silence.

"…I will take my vengeance to the very end!" She declared firmly.

Laphicet's eyes were wide and happy. "Velvet!" he exclaimed.

By her side, Leo grinned. All around them, the group stood steadfast, unwavering in the face of Melchior's reason who faced them down indignantly.

"Don't be a fool!" Melchior demanded heatedly, red-faced with fury. "Just give up an die like you ought! It is your destiny to wallow in despair!"

Velvet's arms crossed, unimpressed. "You take my family, turn me into a monster, and you want my soul, too?"

SQUELCH.

Her daemon claw ripped out, aimed directly at the legate standing before them. "Now who's being the fool?!" She yelled.

Leo chuckled openly. "She does have a point." He commented. "I personally feel like she is entitled to an angry murder or two here and there."

Eleanor gave him a glare. "Leo!" She reprimanded hotly.

"Haha!" Rokurou laughed with a shrug. "Hey, but can you blame her though?"

"W-well not… especially…" Eleanor stammered, wringing her hands. "Not after everything…" She trailed off.

Leo just patted her gently on the back. "That's just how Velvet is, Eleanor." He pointed out.

Eizen let out a fond sigh. "And that's the truth." He let out grudgingly.

Laphicet smiled widely. "That's our Velvet!"

"Hell yeah." Leo agreed.

Velvet gave them all a smirk before returning her hateful eyes upon the bewildered old man.

"Remember this well!" She ordered. "The Lord of Calamity never gives up, not even in the face of death."

"H-have you no shame for your sins, you unholy monster?!" Melchior cursed.

Magilou abruptly broke into a hysterical cackle, stumbling to her feet, clearly exhausted from battling the old man, protecting the rift. "Lemme in on this!" She demanded, wiping the blood from her mouth. "I lost a bet, and I've got some anger to work out!" She yelled with a grin.

Everyone grinned widely back at her.

Velvet asked wryly, "You sure you can fight in your condition?"

An offended finger rose to point at the woman. "Who do you think I am?" Magilou chortled.

Silence.

"Oooh, I thought you'd never ask!" She grinned, steadying herself. "I am the dastardly witch Magilou, scourge of self-righteous exorcists!" She declared, hands on her hips. "Now face, the wrath of Magilou Mayvin!"

"Fools, all of you!" Melchior roared, channeling an arte. The emotionless boy malak at his side followed suit.

And with that, the two parties burst into motion.

* * *

"Hey Magilou!" Leo yelled as he reloaded his rifle. "You wanna let me in on how you can be so  _bad_ at betting?!"

"Oh, be quiet." The witch grumbled, flicking her wrist and sending the enemy kid malak flying into the air with a water arte. "And naturally, I blame old reaps over there."

The reaper in question shot her a look over his shoulder before springing into a backflip, kicking Melchior in the face. "My curse has nothing to do with your poor decisions, witch!" He yelled.

Magilou just blew a raspberry in response, sliding to the side as the enemy malak retaliated with his own water arte.

Laphicet laughed, sending his own arte at the legate. "Magilou just doesn't want people to know she believes in Velvet. That's why she bets against her."

Eleanor blinked in surprise, whirling her spear over her head to fend off a fireball arte. "Huh!" She exclaimed. "That's actually quite insightful, Laphicet. I never would've thought of Magilou as that emotionally invested in someone."

Rokurou grinned coyly, slashing at the legate and driving him into Eizen's punches. "She really tries hard to hide it," He explained, "but it's actually pretty obvious."

Leo laughed, raising his rifle.

CRACK-CAK!

With a boom, the piercing round burrowed through the conjured shield and contacted with the malak, sending him flying unconscious out of the battlefield. "That does makes sense." Leo observed. "I guess the self-declared 'evil witch' just a bit of a romantic at heart."

"Haha!" Laphicet laughed. "I guess she is!"

CRASH.

Everyone blinked as Melchior was abruptly thrown into the air, howling in agony, by a massive, intense flame arte.

Magilou's eye twitched as she lowered her extended hand, growling lowly, "You… Did NOT just call me a ROMANTIC!" She yelled indignantly. "THAT'S SLANDER!" Her eyes were dark.

"I will not stand idly by and watch you  _hooligans_  destroy my carefully-crafted reputation that I've spent centuries carefully nurturing!" She yelled. "Now!" She demanded. "Call me evil! Call me wicked! Call me anything! But don't you  _dare_!" She seethed. "Don't you DARE," her voice dropped hatefully, " _call me a romantic_." She hissed.

Eizen exchanged a glance with Rokurou.

Laphicet exchanged a glance with Eleanor.

Leo exchanged a glance with Velvet.

Velvet smirked evilly. "Oh, is that so? I actually considered you the most romantic out of all of us." She called.

"AGH! I said not to-!"

Rokurou had a sly grin on his face. "Actually, you're the one who's always harping on about the kid's love life, aren't you? I'd say that's a hallmark of a pure romantic right there."

"Stop that right this-!"

Eizen chuckled. "I've travelled the world and seen many things in my time on this world and I must say, nothing has ever quite matched your level of delicacy, Magilou."

Abruptly, Magilou froze.

"…D-delicate…?"

She muttered incomprehensibly under her breath. "…Stabs in the chest, over and over…" She whispered, a sly, happy grin on her face.

Leo shook his head in exasperation as the rest of the group continued to tease Magilou. "Some family." He muttered fondly, reloading his rifle. "They're all cuckoo."

At his side, Velvet shrugged with a smirk on her face. "Your fault for staying." She pointed out.

A sigh. "Yes." Leo grinned as he cocked the rifle. "I suppose I'm a bit cuckoo as well." He admitted openly.

"We've established that, I think." Velvet noted wryly.

The man's eye twitched. "That's my line."

Velvet shrugged. "The Lord of Calamity has no shame for her sins, didn't you hear?"

"Oh, shut up." Leo rolled his eyes with a smirk.

He blinked as Hawk began to growl warningly. "Hey you guys! Break time's over!" He yelled.

Together, the group raised their weapons as Melchior reappeared in a flash of mana with his malak, out for blood.

And together they fought, as one.

On and on the clock ticked, unceasing and unerring.

**End of Part 7 – Will and Reason.**


	47. C45 - Goal

**Chapter 45 – Goal.**

"You guys really are magnets for trouble, you know that?" Zaveid coyly remarked.

Leo and Magilou groaned simultaneously.

"We know."

"We know."

Eleanor let out a breath of relief. "Thank you for your help, Zaveid." She thanked genuinely, sheathing her spear. "I'm not sure we could've defeated Melchior without your help."

The pistol-wielding malak shrugged lightly. "Eh it's no big deal." He let out, waving his still-smoking pistol. "I've had a bone to pick with the old man for a long time now."

"Even so. Thank you." Eleanor smiled.

Laphicet piped up, "Yeah! Thanks, Zaveid."

The wind malak chuckled in response. "Alright, alright." He waved a hand. "You're welcome. There, happy?"

"Yes, yes wonderful." She swatted the matter away. "You mind telling us where in the world we are now?" She glanced around pointedly. "It's been bugging me for a while now."

The howling of the wind surrounded them where they stood upon a floating stone platform in a sea of clouds and winds. There was a vast network of staircases below, connecting individual floating platforms together to form an intricate labyrinth of monolithic stone.

Zaveid explained, "We're in an Abbey facility on Hexen Isle." He shrugged. "I heard Melchior was in charge here, so I snuck in. I hadn't expected an extradimensional space."

Eleanor's eyes were wide. "To think of the size of the arte that would've been necessary to create such a place…" She murmured.

"Strange." Eizen commented as he met Zaveid's eyes. "And you don't know why the Abbey made this space?" He asked roughly.

Zaveid's eyes were hard. "Hey man, I'm just a fighter. These schemes go right over my dumb head."

"Hmph." Eizen turned away and gazed out over the endless sea of clouds and stone. "Whatever the reason, it doesn't matter. We need to move, before Innominat finds us again."

Rokurou nodded seriously. "I seriously don't want to fight that little brat again." He fingered the broken orichalcum Stormhowl handle absent-mindedly. "Not now."

Leo turned his head. "Hey! Ms. Irredeemable-Embodiment-of-Sin!" He yelled. "You ready to go?"

Velvet blinked out of her thoughts and looked up at his voice. She nodded, walking over. "Is there a way out of here, Zaveid?" She asked.

The malak grinned. "There is now that I busted my way in."

"Alright. Let's go. We can talk when we're outside." Velvet indicated for Zaveid to lead the way.

Together, the group began their descent next to the howling winds of the Calix.

* * *

"So that was called an 'Earthen Historia,' huh?" Leo filed the information away for later use. "So, what, essentially everything that occurs on this world is… written down?"

Eizen nodded, walking down the steps as he explained what he had already told the group. "In a manner of speaking, yes. All actions in nature leave their mark on the earthpulse, whether it be the blowing of the wind, the flowing of the water, or the flapping of the birds."

His eyes narrowed as he stared meaningfully at Leo's. " _Everything_  that occurs is part of nature. The acts of humans, malakhim, and daemons."

Eleanor blinked in confusion. "What I don't understand is why for the first few Earthen Historias that we saw…" she trailed off, looking at Leo.

Eizen grunted. "Exactly." His brow furrowed in befuddlement. "For all intents and purposes, Leo was utterly invisible in the Earthen Historia. As if he somehow hadn't existed in the first place."

Rokurou nodded. "I thought that was strange too. All the other people in the memory all acted just as if he was there… but it looked as if they were just talking to some imaginary friend called Leonex Davidson." He glanced at Leo. "…Why is that, exactly?"

With all eyes on him, Leo winced. "I… have no clue." He shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine."

Eizen's eyes narrowed, piercing his. The reaper stayed silent as he observed Leo's expression, brows furrowed in thought.

"I think I know why."

Velvet's voice intruded in on the conversation. Everyone shifted their gazes towards the therion as she slowed her leading steps to match the rest of them.

Laphicet cocked his head. "Velvet?" He prompted.

"The Earthen Historias were all handpicked just for me," she explained coldly, "to wring the most despair out of me as possible by Innominat." Her eyes were hard. "Manipulating the memories to erase Leo from the past was most likely his way of trying to lessen the impact of his attempts to calm me down."

Instinctively, Leo winced and rubbed his bruised shoulders, still hurting even after all of Hawk's efforts.

Eleanor blinked. "I guess that does make sense…" She trailed off, glancing at Leo again. She blinked. "Hold on. You hadn't hurt Leo before we arrived, had you?" She glanced worriedly at the woman, her mind flashing back to the sheer terror she had felt when Velvet's claw had wrapped around her.

To her surprise, Magilou barked out a sharp laugh at the query.

"Please! I think we all know by now that our little handyman is a masochist at this point." She grinned wryly, nudging the man in question. "How else could you explain why he insists on dogging her every step like a whipped puppy, despite all her efforts to push him away?"

Leo's gaze soured as he glared at the grinning witch. "I'll have you know that this puppy bites." He warned darkly.

Magilou rolled her eyes. "Oh, the terror." She mocked dryly. "Whaddya gonna do, nibble on my hat?"

In response, Leo simply clicked the safety off on his rifle.

"Waaah!" Magilou shouted in reflex as she took frantic cover behind a stoic Eizen. "I take it all back! Just don't bite me!" She pleaded, her hat sticking out absurdly over Eizen's blonde hair.

Laphicet laughed as he spectated. His expression abruptly fell as he remembered something. He turned to Leo and asked, "But really, Leo, weren't you hurt when we saw you?" He asked worriedly. "It looked pretty bad."

Leo's eyes caught a rather guilty-looking Velvet in his peripheral vision. He shrugged. "It wasn't bad." He told the malak lightly. "It was worth the cost of trying to break through to a friend."

In response, Velvet let out a good-natured scoff, secretly relieved of Leo's lack of animosity for her crazed actions against her. "I'm going to have to agree with Magilou on this one." She smirked wryly. "After all, didn't you say you'd just do 'what feels right?'" She quoted.

Magilou chortled from behind Eizen. "Ohoh! A masochist indeed!"

Leo's eye twitched as he turned his gaze her direction.

"10." He began counting ominously.

"Wh-what now?! Oh, come on!" Magilou cried.

"9…"

Rokurou grinned. "You've done it now, Magilou. You'd better run."

"This is just bullying! You can't do this!" The witch denied.

"8…"

Eizen meaningfully slowed his steps, leaving Magilou without her cover. "You brought this upon yourself, Magilou. I won't have you dragging me or anyone else into this."

"Gah! You abhorrent pirate!" She shrieked.

"7…"

Laphicet observed worriedly, "I think you've crossed the line, Magilou. I'd run if I were you!"

"This isn't fair!"

"6…"

"Miss Magilou!" Bienfu urged. "We've gotta make a break for it!"

"Agh! No way! The great Magilou Mayvin never backs down from a-!"

CHINK. CHINK.

"5…" Leo drawled as he chambered a rubber round into his rifle.

Magilou exchanged wide glances with Bienfu.

"4…"

Velvet smirked as she shrugged, "I'd recommend you run, Magilou. I for one can testify how hard Leo's bullets hit, even if they don't draw blood."

The witch gaped at the therion in terror.

"3…"

Hawk yipped in warning. His master wasn't kidding around!

Eleanor shook her head in exasperation. "This… isn't going to go well." She observed dryly.

Magilou's eye twitched.

"2…"

"Hey Bienfu?" Magilou asked quietly.

"Y-yes Miss Magilou?" Bienfu responded in terror.

"You're not allowed to tell anyone about this, understood?" Her eyes were dark. "If you do, I'll put a curse on you until the day you die that you will never,  _ever_ be able to say the word Bien ever again."

"BI-BIEEN!" Bienfu shuddered in horror. "Ab-Absolutely, Miss Magilou!" He saluted firmly.

"1…" The rifle began to raise.

"AAAAAHHHH!"

Magilou squealed as she abruptly took off running down the stairs, her arms flailing in a desperate bid for balance as she took the steps two at a time, her hat flailing ridiculously left and right.

"BIEEN! THIS IS BAD-BAD!" Bienfu sped after her in a panicked flight.

Everyone waited in suspense as Leo's rifle raised.

"0."

Silence. The roaring of the Calix winds permeated the atmosphere.

Velvet broke it abruptly with an exasperated sigh. "You're not going to shoot her, are you?" She muttered.

Leo grinned vindictively, concisely shouldering his rifle. "Of course not. I just want to see how far she can run."

Eleanor just facepalmed. "You're so evil." She muttered.

"Hey! I don't go around calling people masochists, alright?!" Leo yelled in his defense.

Laphicet cocked his head curiously, glancing up at Eleanor. "Um, what's a 'masochist?'" He asked innocently.

Both Velvet and Eleanor instantly responded.

"You really don't need to know."

"You really don't need to know."

Laphicet didn't seem enlightened.

Rokurou grinned slyly. "Oh, come on, guys! What if he ends up being one?" He pointed a thumb at himself. "My family always had an open policy on education. If you know all about it, you won't feel bad about it!"

Eizen huffed. "I agree." He splayed his hands. "A man's wants and needs are his own, and aren't to be determined by what society deems is good or bad. That's what living is all about." He observed sagely.

Eleanor groaned. "Eizen…" She breathed. "Let's just… not. Okay?"

Velvet rubbed her temples. "Seconded."

Both Rokurou and Eizen just let out lethargic sighs in response.

Suddenly, Zaveid interjected into the conversation.

"Oh, come on, ladies! What do  _you two_  know? A guy wants what a guy wants!" He turned grinningly to the kid.

"So, how about it, kid?" He nudged Laphicet wryly. "You like the tall ones? Short ones? The angry ones? The wimpy ones?"

"Uh…! I…! I…!" Laphicet sputtered wordlessly.

Zaveid grinned widely. "Or perhaps you like the super strong type, like a certain hot therion we all-"

CRASH!

"WHOA!" Zaveid yelped as he ran away with his tail between his legs from the wrathful monster bashing the stairs he ran on. "Alright! Geez! Crazy ass-!" He yelled, getting as much distance between himself and the crazy woman as possible.

Velvet huffed in pure exasperation, dispelling her daemon claw. "Just-! BE QUIET!" She yelled hotly down at the malak.

Meanwhile, Laphicet looked up at Leo with an absolutely lost look on his face.

Leo shrugged helplessly. "Hey, don't look at me, Phi; I'm not telling you what it is. I for one don't want to get smacked around by that claw, regardless of what Magilou might claim." He explained.

"But… why would you want to?" Laphicet asked in confusion.

In response, Leo just muttered something vague and trotted down the steps to rendezvous with the rest of the group.

Laphicet sighed in befuddlement. "You're all so strange sometimes." He muttered petulantly before following them.

Standing by himself, lagging behind the group, Eizen's thoughts continued to run rampant.

"Now why would he not appear in the Earthen Historia…?" The reaper muttered quietly to himself.

"Strange…" He breathed, staring curiously at the strange enigma of a man as he walked by Velvet's side.

All around the Calix, the wind roared.

* * *

"AAAH!" Magilou screamed in surprise as the group suddenly appeared around the corner.

"Oh… It's just you people." She moaned, sliding back down the pillar she was leaning against in exhaustion. "Geh." She breathed.

"Bien! Miss Magilou! Hang in there!" Bienfu encouraged, hovering above the sweating witch.

Velvet watched the witch in confusion. "Why the hell did you run so far?" She glanced back up at the steps the group had gone down. It had been almost fifteen minutes since Leo had threatened to shoot her.

Bienfu moaned, "Poor Miss Magilou tripped on the stairs and ended up rolling all the way down here! She's in so much bad-bad pain right now!"

"Hush." Magilou grunted, getting to her feet. "I was just pondering about the world. Some reflection is good for the soul, or so I'm told." She shrugged. "Not like I have one."

Rokurou deadpanned. "If that's so, why do you have so many bruises on your face?"

"How rude!" The witch exclaimed. "Do you go around saying that to every woman on the street?" She clicked her tongue. "Typical daemon transgressions, I suppose."

"Uhuh." Rokurou's expression remained unchanged.

"Remember," Eizen spoke up, "We are still in enemy territory."

Velvet nodded. "You're right. Let's keep moving."

Leo grinned vindictively at Magilou. "Enjoy your little jog?" He asked evilly.

"Gah!" Magilou sputtered. "I take it back! You, Leonex Davidson, are clearly a sadist!" With a humph, the woman took off indignantly, visibly shuddering in pain with each step.

Leo just shrugged in response. "Maybe." He put casually as the rest of the group followed the witch.

Velvet fell into step with him with an eye roll. "Don't you think you're getting a little  _too_ into this?"

Leo huffed. "I guess you're rubbing off on me."

Velvet smirked. "Yeah, yeah." She waved him off.

The two descended the steps in secret as the rest of the group chatted amicably away in front of them. The winds had lessened in volume the closer the group got to the bottom of the stone structures.

Velvet broke the silence.

"I still can't quite wrap my head around it." She commented as Leo looked over. "That you're from another  _world_ …" She muttered in astonishment.

"Is it really that far-fetched?" Leo asked wryly. "After all the shit that's happened to you, I don't think you have the right to say anything about my past."

She let out a laugh. "I guess you have a point." Her brow furrowed. "How does it work, exactly? How do you know which world to go to next? You said you couldn't find your way back to your own world, right?"

Leo nodded soberly. "That's right." He pointed to his head. "Like I said, I have a machine in my head. Now, if I had to explain the whole specifics of it to you I'd need five years, give or take, so short version is…" He took a breath.

"It's random, which world I go to. The device runs preliminary scans on a potential world candidate. It scans for all the things a human needs to survive; water, oxygen, all that stuff. It's also keyed to my home world's unique time foundation, which means a year in this world is a year in my world."

Velvet blinked. "You're saying that time can be different between worlds?"

Leo nodded. "Right. The differences between worlds are relative, specific to each different pair of worlds. For instance, the world of Desolation and the world I come from are synchronized. But if I go to a different world, that world would also be synchronized to the world I come from. However, it is very possible that world would be desynchronized to Desolation."

"If A equals B, and A equals C, that doesn't mean that B equals C." He shrugged. "That's just how wonky the worlds are. And that's why my machine makes these scans before committing to transporting me to a different world."

"How in the world did you find out about all of this?" Velvet asked with wide eyes, trying hard to internalize all this otherworldly information.

Leo smiled sadly. "My dad and I worked on these theories for a long time." His eyes were distant. "Before he passed away."

Velvet blinked. "That's right… you did mention your father."

"My fondest memories of my dad were back when we didn't know about the nature of the worlds." Leo's words were nostalgic. "When we'd spend endless nights pouring over rambling theories and stupidly complex models of the world…"

"I believe it." Velvet muttered.

Leo blinked.

She elaborated, "You've always been so… smart."

Leo grinned arrogantly. "Awe!" He cooed.

Velvet's eye twitched and she whacked the back of his head. "In some ways." She responded dryly. "In other ways, you're just a complete idiot." Ignoring the man's complaining, she continued, "Your weapons, your ability to fix things… Hell, the moment I learned you fixed Drake's old clock I knew you were something else."

Her smile was soft. "No wonder Laphi had so much fun with you."

Leo's expression sobered.

"…Are you alright now, Velvet?" He asked seriously.

The woman nodded honestly. "I am now. Thanks to you and Phi." She responded genuinely.

There was a wide smile on Leo's face. He intoned genuinely, "You know, there are no words that can accurately describe how glad I am that I decided to stay." He looked off at the group happily. "Truly. This world of yours, and you people… You're all something else."

Velvet huffed. "I don't know if I should feel offended or not."

He cracked a wry grin in response. "Honestly, in some ways, I'm still that same kid that I always was, all those years ago; the one who just wanted to see what was beyond the horizon…"

Velvet's voice was soft. "…But you have a home to go to, don't you?"

Leo nodded wordlessly, his smile fading from his face.

With quiet movements, the man hesitated before reaching into his jacket and pulling out that familiar notebook.

Velvet blinked as he handed it openly to her. "Leo?"

"Take a look." He muttered, not looking at her.

Keenly aware of just how precious the item in her hands was to her friend, Velvet gingerly flipped open the notebook.

"The Davidson Phenomenon…" She murmured to herself.

The moment that notebook had left his hand, Leo had felt lighter. He felt as if a weight he had been carrying for almost a decade had finally been lifted from his shoulders. There was nothing, he reckoned, that would feel nearly as good as this. Trust. Commitment.

He said softly, "Turn to the second page."

With a soft creak of paper, Velvet did as he told. She blinked as she took in the sketch; a portrait of a woman. A woman with cascading blonde hair, warm brown eyes with a hint of a smile playing on her lips.

"Martha… Davidson." She read the words. Suddenly, realization dawned upon her. She snapped her head to Leo. "Your… wife?!" She exclaimed.

Leo smiled sadly, quietly taking the notebook and gazing tenderly at the woman's likeliness. "…Yeah." He intoned. "That's home."

The sounds of their steps permeated the silence. The inane banter of the group further down floated aimlessly in the air, ignored by the two of them.

"You said… You said that you couldn't find your way back." Velvet murmured quietly.

Leo sighed, shutting the notebook and sliding it habitually back into his coat pocket. He stopped walking abruptly, staring out into the vast landscape of clouds.

"That doesn't stop me from trying." He muttered.

He let out a breath. "As far as I can tell, there is an infinite number of different worlds out there. The chances of me randomly stumbling upon my home world again is infinitesimally small."

Velvet finished, "And yet, you still try."

Leo met her gaze sadly. "Yeah. And I will keep doing so until the day I die." His fist clenched. "That's why… that's why one day I'll have to say goodbye to you and the rest of the group as well."

He sighed. "And that will never change. Ever. That's all there is to it."

And with that, the man resumed walking in silence, leaving Velvet Crowe staring after him in consternation.

The lonely wanderer she had grown fond of.

* * *

"Heheheh… We used to play tag all the time…"

The chilling laughter raised the hairs on Leo's neck as he turned in alarm to see Innominat across from them, his arm still raised in the aftermath of his cast arte. The arte that had obliterated the malak Silva that they had saved from Melchior.

He growled lowly. "You bastard…"

Innominat's eyes hardened. "I won't let you get away, Velvet." He stated calmly.

Everyone in the group shifted in trepidation.

"Ahh… Ah…! I-I'm… I'm, I'm scared…!" Silva trembled on the floor behind them, bursting with alarming amounts of malevolence.

"Stop it!" Eleanor pleaded. "You're turning him into a dragon!"

Innominat wasn't moved. "That was the whole reason I took him from Teresa." He informed them blithely. "It's just another necessary sacrifice for peace."

Coming from him, it just sounded wrong.

SQUELCH.

With a massive roar, the malak formerly known as Number One, Silva, gave in to the malevolence and transformed into a massive, powerful dragon. The roar echoed off the hills of Hexen Isle, the island where the group had exited the Calix onto. They were trapped.

"Innominat to the front of us, a dragon to the back of us…" Magilou grinned uncaringly. "Reaper's Curse doesn't begin to describe it." She muttered.

"What a shame… Is that 'despair' I sense?" Innominat's punk voice broke Leo's shock.

He growled lowly. "Go fuck yourself, kid."

The god's eyes drifted onto the man and narrowed. "Ah. Leo. Did you enjoy the Earthen Historias I showed you?"

Leo winced. "And why, exactly, did you show us those?"

The white-clad Empyrean splayed his hands openly. "Because I couldn't find an explanation for it." He put simply.

"Why is it that you don't appear in a single Earthen Historia in the earth's memory?" His head cocked curiously, and his eyes burrowed into Leo's searching the truth. "What makes you so… special?"

Leo kept his gaze steady, his mouth firmly clamped shut.

Innominat grinned slyly. "I suppose there is more to you than meets the eye after all." His gaze shifted to Velvet. "I don't suppose you have an explanation for me, do you, my dear sister?"

Velvet's eyes met Leo's before she turned her cold gaze upon the Empyrean. "I don't. And even if I did, I'd be damned if I was to let you in on it." Her fists curled as she glanced back at the dragon advancing upon their group.

"It'll take more than this to make your big sister break." She muttered.

Innominat's eyes were cold as his eyes shifted from Velvet to Leo and back. "…The more you resist… the more you'll suffer." He promised.

Zaveid stepped forwards. "Velvet." He called. "Let me punish this rotten little delinquent." His eyes were ablaze with hatred.

"You're just a malak. You don't stand a chance."

Zaveid grinned, putting Seigfreid to his temple. "I'm not just any malak…"

WHOOSH!

"And I'm sick of murdering scum like you!"

WHOOSH!

"I KNOW NO LIMITS!"

WHOOSH!

"FOR I AM ZAVEID!"

And with that declaration, the malak charged, blades of wind sheathing his body and blowing away the god with unmatched ferocity.

"Zaveid!" Eizen yelled in surprise as the man charged forward, heedless of the fact that he was fighting a literal god.

Leo shook his head. "We've got bigger problems to worry about!" He yelled, pulling out his rifle and filling it with piercing rounds and facing the giant fearsome dragon charging their position.

Rokurou spat on the ground, pulling out his swords. "This is officially too damn much!" He yelled angrily.

"Oh?" Magilou muttered sourly. "So, everything else up until this point has been just fine and dandy?!" Her guardians whipped out in flashes of light, hovering over her extended fingers.

"We'll be fine!" Velvet yelled, rushing forward. "Take them out one by one!"

"Easier said than done!" Leo roared as he raised his rifle.

CRACK-CAK!

The first of many discharges the wilds of Calix Island would witness rang out over the hills, proof of a vicious and desperate battle for survival.

* * *

"You talk big, but you're struggling even to protect yourself." Innominat goaded as he flicked his wrist, igniting a massive explosion that engulfed his opponent across the field.

Laphicet yelled in exertion, splaying his palms out to maintain a protective shield to deflect against the arte. His skin burned with the intensity of the Empyrean's boundless power.

"Hehe…" Innominat's giggle boiled Laphicet's blood. "If you apologize now… I'll make sure it doesn't hurt when I devour you." He offered reasonably.

"No way…" Laphicet coughed, waving the smoke away as he got to his feet once more. "No way I'm apologizing…" His eyes held fire as he glared hatefully at his opponent. "Not to some jerk who doesn't understand how Velvet feels!"

Innominat wasn't impressed. "And you're saying that you do?" He asked mockingly. "She's MY sister."

CRACK-CAK!

Leo's rifle coughed smoke and fire as the man discharged his weapon once more, distracting the massive dragon for just enough time to allow for Velvet and Rokurou to slice deep gouges alongside the daemon's flank.

"Come on, Phi!" Leo yelled across the field as he ducked away from the dragon's retaliatory claw attack. "Show that heartless bastard who's boss!"

"…I know everything." Laphicet returned stoutly. "…But I won't tell you!"

"Hmph." Innominat's eyes opened in irritation. "So be it."

With that, he flicked his wrist again. Laphicet was hard-pressed to defend against a barrage of explosions. Suddenly, an arrow of holy white light pierced the smoke.

"If I devour you, we'll be one again anyway!" Innominat declared as he charged, his white sword poised to pierce Laphicet's heart.

Desperate, Laphicet jerked his hand inside his pouch and pulled out something to defend himself with.

CRASH!

"The compass?!" Innominat gasped as his sword pierced the familiar trinket.

"She isn't…" Laphicet's left hand curled into a fist.

"YOURS!"

SMACK!

With a satisfying smash, the malak's left hook crashed directly onto the Empyrean's right cheek, sending the god sprawling onto the ground, clutching the wound in surprise.

Leo caught the successful attack in the corner of his eye. He ducked a sweep of the dragon's tail and continued to fight, confident in Laphicet's determination. That was a malak who knew what he wanted alright.

"Velvet is  _Velvet_!" Laphicet shouted, standing before the fallen Empyrean in righteous wrath.

Innominat's fist curled.

"…AND YOU'RE JUST A  _FRAGMENT_ OF ME!" Innominat screamed in fury.

Those words reached Leo's ears with crystal-clear clarity. Yet only later would the full significance of their meaning sink in.

For now, all he cared about was the rapidly charging arte of power in the Empyrean's raised palm.

"Everyone, GET DOWN!" Leo roared, throwing himself out of the way.

The entire group followed suit, dodging the wrath of an enraged god by millimeters as the massive pulse of light mana flew forward.

BANG!

An enraged roar resounded across Hexen Isle as the dragon took the full brunt of the Empyrean's arte. Howling in agony, the dragon erupted in flame, engulfing the Empyrean's position in retaliation. The group all clutched their weapons as the storm roared overhead, the stream of fire unending in its might.

And then just like that it ended.

With a hollow thump, the dragon that had once been the malak Silva slumped onto the plains, dead.

With a shaky breath, Eleanor got to her feet and anxiously surveyed the burnt battlefield. Her eyes landed on Laphicet's harried form. She instantly put it together. "So that was your strategy!" She concluded.

In response, Magilou whirled around angrily. "Hey!" She yelled indignantly. "Give us more warning! You almost roasted us alive!"

"Hey, he did alright!" Leo defended the malak, getting to his feet and reloading his rifle. "We're not roasted, are we?"

"Oh,  _now_ you become an optimist!" She retorted sourly.

"You've… really… done it now…!"

All attention was instantly drawn to the Empyrean getting to his feet, his brilliant white clothing marred by soot and dirt, his eyes ablaze with fury.

"I'll turn YOU into a dragon! SEE WHO'S LAUGHING THEN!" Innominat yelled, slashing his arm forward and engulfing the malak in a cloud of thick malevolence.

Laphicet's scream of agony resounded across the marred landscape.

"NO!" Leo yelled in vain.

"LAPHICET!" Velvet screamed, charging forward.

Leo watched in horror as Laphicet's scream tripled in volume, the very fabric of his existence being forcibly corrupted. Streams of dark purple miasma leeched hungrily on his body, driving into his skin like parasites.

Laphicet was about to become a daemon. And there was nothing any of them could do about it.

And then Leo was blinded by a flash of blue.

BANG!

The young malak's roar of fury rippled outwards, accompanied by strange, bright blue otherworldly flames emitting from his very being. Instantly, all malevolence that had been consuming his existence was eradicated as the flames passed through them.

"W-What's going on?!" Innominat was helpless to stop the strange energy spewing out from his opponent's body. "AAAAAAH!" Unable to withstand the furious forces pounding his body, Innominat was cast off like a leaf in the wind, tumbling head over heels away from Laphicet's form.

Leo's grip on his rifle was slack as he stared in awe, shielding his eyes from the brilliant azure blue flare of otherworldly power.

By his side, Velvet blinked in confusion. "The malevolence burned away?!" She exclaimed.

"What the…?" Leo muttered, his mind racing to try and come up with an explanation for the phenomenon.

Just as abruptly as it had begun, the blue flame disappeared, leaving behind an utterly exhausted malak wavering helplessly on his feet.

"We're leaving!" Eizen declared as he ran forward and caught Laphicet's falling form. "Hurry!"

Shaking himself out of his shock, Leo followed the rest of the group as they retreated, capitalizing on the distraction that Laphicet had somehow provided. As he ran, Leo kept replaying the moment over and over again in his head.

A brilliant blue star that had apparently taken residence on the surface of the world.

The group's labored breathing surrounded him as they ran away together, away from the judgement of a god.


	48. C46 - Secrets

**Chapter 46 – Secrets.**

A stray breeze whistled its way through the quiet cliffs, rustling the wrapped and stowed canvas overhead and eliciting a soft creak from the merchant ship Leo was perched on.

The bubbling of the water filled the silence as it lapped against the docks, easing the troubled man's mind. Leo sighed, leaning back on the bow of the ship and staring up at the dull brown mast and the bounty of stars framed behind it.

All around him, Port Cadnix was silent as the grave.

It was funny, really. In the past few days, he'd fought and bled more than he'd ever done in his entire, eventful life. And the first moment of rest he was afforded, he just couldn't sleep.

Everyone else in the group had stumbled into the local inn the moment Zaveid's ship had touched down in port and fallen into an exhausted slumber. Poor Laphicet was probably still unconscious from his tussle with Innominat.

And after he'd expelled a flame that burned away malevolence...

Leo shook his head. He was way in over his head. This was all too confusing for him to internalize.

The revelation of Innominat's true purpose; to suppress all human emotions. The revelation of his need for certain 'types' of malevolence. The fact that young, innocent Laphi had…  _wanted_ to be sacrificed. That in the end, Velvet Crowe wasn't avenging her brother, but rather, herself. For the wrongs committed against her.

He shifted, adjusting his hands to more comfortably cradle his head as he laid there on the bow of the silently bobbing ship.

All of that in of itself was completely bonkers. But then there was his own can of worms to worry about.

999.99%...

Now just how in the hell had  _that_  happened?

Leo fiddled mentally with the augmented reality heads-up display, fiddling through the familiar settings and observing the statistics.

A graph popped up in his vision. He stared at it in confusion.

The moment he had fallen into Innominat's mouth… the radiation amount had inexplicably spiked. Within microseconds, the device had reached its maximum capacity for radiation. An amount that should have taken over 30 years of passive absorption, gathered all in a single instant.

…How?

He was at a complete loss for that.

He let out another quiet sigh, regrettably still wide awake. He closed his eyes nonetheless and simply listened to the wind whistling through the distant crags alongside the rustling of the canvas surrounding him.

"Velvet."

Leo's eyes blinked open as the soft voice reached his ears.

He glanced over quietly, abruptly registering Velvet's brooding form as she stood on the edge of the docks near the ship, staring out into the ocean with troubled eyes. An awake and worried Laphicet padded quietly up to the woman.

The chains on her outfit clinking quietly, the woman turned around with a soft smile on her face. "Should you be up so soon?" She asked gently.

"Yeah," Laphicet nodded hesitantly, "but…!" His words halted as he took in the woman's appearance.

And the malevolence cloaking her.

Leo's breath hitched.

The woman urgently ordered, "Stay back." She took a protective step away from the malak, the malevolence emitting from her being like a fog.

Laphicet's quiet gasp reached Leo's ears.

A sigh.

"…It's finally come to this." Velvet observed detachedly. "…But of course, it did. After all, I chose my revenge over a world of peace." She put a hand on her hip. "I can't complain if people call me the Lord of Calamity."

Leo watched with soft eyes as the malak disregarded his orders and trotted up closer to the malevolent woman, uncaring of the danger.

"…Velvet," Laphicet intoned tenderly. "Whether you're human, daemon, or Lord of Calamity…"

A shine of amber drew Leo's eyes as the malak pulled out a familiar comb from his pouch.

"…It doesn't change that you have beautiful hair." Laphicet smiled gently, offering the comb to the woman.

Leo smiled as Velvet gently took the offered comb and examined it carefully. "Laphi said the same thing to me, a long time ago." Velvet recounted distantly. "He gave me this comb."

Laphicet's eyes were deeply empathetic. "Your heart." He mumbled. "I can tell it aches."

"Yes…" She turned away, towards the night. "But even still…" She shook her head. "No, because of that," she whispered, "I've made up my mind."

A bandaged hand crossed her breast. "I'm going to settle things with Artorius and Innominat. Once and for all." She promised quietly.

"It must be done. For my sake… And for the sake of those I loved."

Laphicet's steps were quiet as he made his way to stand by her side, staring out at the same horizon.

"I will too." He promised as well. "Even without my compass… I'll place my hand on the wheel and chart my own course." He promised.

The two stayed there like that, together in the night.

Leo grinned softly.

The kid would grow up to be the man he never was.

Leo turned his head again, back to the stars up above while Velvet and Laphicet watched the horizon below. He closed his eyes once more and simply relished the moment. He felt like he belonged. Regardless of everything else. That's all that mattered to him.

Far up in the stars, a shooting star glistened as it tore its way through the heavens.

* * *

It wasn't long before Laphicet headed back to the inn, ordered by a stout Velvet who insisted that he go back inside and rest before the group continued the next morning, leaving her alone on the docks. A stray breeze nipped at her heels, rustling her hair and playing with her coat.

She abruptly spoke aloud, seemingly to no one.

"Eavesdropping isn't a very nice thing to do, you know."

Leo wasn't fazed. He scoffed and responded sarcastically from his perch on the bow, "And I'm sure all of you are  _very nice people_  who care very much about social norms."

With a grunt, he picked himself up and began to gingerly climb down from the ship and down onto the docks below.

"Shit-!" He swore as his fingers slipped on the wet planks.

With a sigh, Velvet mildly held out her left arm and extended her daemon claw, creating a large platform for the falling man to land on. The man landed feet-first on top the appendage with a grunt.

"You're hopeless, you know that?" Velvet noted wryly as she lowered her pulsating claw, allowing the man to step off onto solid land with a huff.

"Yeah, yeah." Leo just waved her off as her claw disappeared with a squelch, trotting over to where she and Laphicet had been talking. He crossed his arms and stared out into the darkness quietly.

As Velvet's footsteps tapped quietly behind him as she stood next to him, Leo commented quietly, "He's a good kid, isn't he?"

Her eyes were soft. "Yeah."

And then once again, tendrils of pure evil began to seep through the cracks, enveloping the woman in her own sin. "He is…" She muttered, wreathed in malevolence.

Leo's expression softened.

He grinned abruptly, changing the subject. "Thanks for covering for me by the way, about the Earthen Historias."

Velvet huffed. "It was hardly effective, in the end." She waved a hand. "Innominat made it clear that even he didn't understand why you didn't appear in them."

Leo shook his head. "Yeah… that's true." He glanced sourly over his shoulder at the empty docks. "I'm pretty sure Eizen knows something's up. He doesn't seem the kind to miss much."

"So." Velvet began, turning to the man.

"Why are you still keeping your secrets from everyone else?" She asked seriously.

Leo sighed in response, slowly bending down and settling himself onto the side of the dock, dangling his feet closer to the lapping waters. His eyes were distant.

"I'm just…" He began haltingly, "I suppose old habits just die hard, in the end."

He fiddled with a bullet in his hand, as usual. He held it up to the moonlight, watching his own warped reflection in the bright metal.

"You're…" he admitted, "the only person I feel comfortable sharing this with." He shook his head self-depreciatingly. "…I suppose a part of me still fears that inevitable parting, and just wants to keep living in ignorance."

He grinned wryly up at the woman standing beside him. "I'm just that much of a coward, I guess."

Velvet let out a scoff, crossing her arms and watching the stars up above. "You're just figuring that out now?" She asked wryly.

"Ouch." Leo grinned wryly. "Aren't you supposed to deny my statement and say something like, 'oh, you're so brave Leo,' or, 'oh, I know you're a lion at heart,' or something like that?"

The woman let out a laugh. "A lion?" She smirked at the very notion. "I'm pretty sure your spirit animal is a rabbit. Or at the very best, a prickleboar."

"A prickleboar?" Leo sighed melodramatically. "…Eh, I'll take what I can get." He shrugged. "Prickleboars do have a strong sense of kinship and bonding."

"And are extremely temperamental." Velvet pointed out.

"Lady, are you calling  _me_ temperamental?!" Leo retorted heatedly. "I'm not the one with the malevolence jacket!"

All of a sudden, the light atmosphere shattered.

Velvet's smirk vanished. She looked away, fists clenched. The cloud of evil floating around her seemed to intensify.

Internally beating himself up for being so callous, Leo stammered, "H-hey, sorry. I didn't mean to-"

Velvet cut him off.

"Innominat." She muttered, her hair obscuring her eyes from Leo's view.

"When I kill him." She whispered. "What do you think… will happen to the therions?"

In the distance, the wind picked up in a howl, whistling through the surrounding cliffs. Ever so quietly, the tendrils of malevolence rose, engulfing his friend.

Leo's eyes were wide. What did that…? "I… I haven't thought about it at all." He admitted. "It's all been a bit too overwhelming." He murmured quietly.

Velvet continued to face away from him, as if reluctant to face his judgement of her sin.

"I… I think they'll all die." She admitted in a hoarse whisper.

Leo froze. His mind flashed back to Laphicet's blue flame, and to Innominat's words on Hexen Isle.

"…What about Laphicet?" Leo asked softly. But deep inside, he already knew the answer.

There was only one reason why Velvet would seep so deeply into the abyss.

"Him too." She confirmed quietly, hatefully.

"And yet…" She gently lifted her left hand, idly observing the purple tendrils seeping out of her very being. "I still move on. In the end," she muttered disdainfully, "…I'm just as bad as Artorius."

The hand clenched into a fist. "I'm just another selfish individual, sacrificing that which I have no right to use."

The silence thickened as the last words fell out of her mouth.

Leo quietly leant back, laying his head on the rough stones of the port and staring directly up at the stars, his mind whirling with the revelation. He didn't know what to say.

He opened his mouth.

"I… told you about how much I hate myself, right?" He murmured.

Velvet blinked.

Watching the clouds as they drifted quietly in the night, Leo continued softly. "My… dad was the one who made the most headway in designing my world-travelling device." He sighed, his eyes seeing a different time and a different place.

"It was his obsession, in the end. When he learned that he only had a few more years left alive, he devoted all of his being to his dream of exploring another world. Everything else just faded away."

He lifted a lazy hand in the air, gazing at it absently. "…Even his own son and his wife were mere afterthoughts." The hand clenched into a fist. "He never did manage to achieve his dream, in the end. He died before he finished it."

Velvet's eyes were soft, her mind open to her friend's openly divulged history. A history she knew he had never shared to anyone else in this world.

"I was angry." Leo admitted. "I cursed him for wasting his time; for choosing a stupid dream over his own family. So, I cast it all off. I tried my best to forget about all the decades we spent together, working happily on the theories and the models as father and son. I tried to live my own life, free of my father's corruption."

Velvet saw where this was going. "But you couldn't, could you?"

Leo shook his head, his arm flopping down limply onto the ground. "One day, it all got too much."

"I got into a fight with my wife." He admitted. "A big one. I felt useless, as if nothing in life held any purpose."

He sighed. "And it was then I committed the worst mistake of my entire life." His eyes spoke of endless years of sorrow and fury. Of self-hatred.

"You ran away." Velvet murmured softly.

Leo grunted. "Leonex Davidson ran away. How surprising." He snarked self-depreciatingly.

He exhaled into the night. "I half-assed everything when I dug up my father's old schematics. The fact that he hadn't finalized a way to return to visited worlds didn't matter to me. I vaguely tried to fix it, but I didn't test it at all. I simply didn't care. I just wanted to get away from it all."

He waved his hands in a depressing conclusion. "Look at me now. Marooned away from home, with nothing but my self-hatred and longing for home driving me forward."

"And that's… my story." He muttered to his friend. "I've been trying to get home ever since."

It all made sense now, to Velvet.

Everything her friend had gone through; his jaded personality, his bouts of acute self-hatred, his deep longing for home; all of it just clicked. Leo had opened up to her, fully. She felt… honored; honored to be the one he'd found his way to trust, after everything he'd gone through.

"Now… about Innominat."

The words brought the crushing reality of the situation back down on the woman in an instant. Just like that, the malevolence around her was back, waving around in her vision and surrounding her like an old friend. She glanced wordlessly down at the traveler.

Leo met her gaze. "Don't do what I did." He advised kindly. "That's all I can offer."

"What you… did?" Velvet mumbled.

Leo nodded, sitting up abruptly. "I…" He muttered, pulling out his notebook and flipping absently to the portrait of his wife. "I ran from my problems, my fears, my doubts." He admitted, his eyes soft and regretful as he gazed longingly at his wife's likeliness.

In his mind, the image of a ringing cell phone appeared. A call left unanswered.

With a huff, he returned the notebook to his jacket pocket and stood up, turning to the woman he was determined to help.

"Talk." He urged. "Open up. Don't hide your demons inside of you."

The wind began to die down, leaving a quiet summer night in its wake.

"If you let your darkness bottle up inside of you, you'll end up doing something you'll regret for the rest of your life." He promised darkly, his mind on his own self-hatred.

"Just like me."

His gaze shifted to the inn on the other side of town, his eyes softening. "I had loved ones, right next to me… and I hid from them. And now look at me." He scoffed lightly. "I still have days where I hate myself so much I'd happily leap off a cliff if it wasn't for my longing for home."

He met Velvet's eyes. "So, do what needs to be done, daemon Velvet." He ordered. "That's all I'm saying."

And then he fell silent, his piece having been said.

"…Thank you." Velvet murmured, her gaze shifting back to the horizon. "I… appreciate the advice, Leo." She whispered. "Really. It helps."

Somehow the cloud of malevolence seemed thinner to Leo. Or it could've simply been his imagination.

He grinned wryly. "What are friends for, huh?"

"Eavesdropping, apparently." She remarked wryly.

" _Listen_." Leo muttered indignantly. "I was here  _first_ , alright? Go find your own dock."

Velvet shook her head fondly. "Shouldn't you be in bed?" She asked pointedly.

"I could as the same of you, brooding Lord of Calamity." Leo shot back.

She waved an uncaring hand in the air. "I'm not the one who's going to be complaining all day tomorrow about how tired he is."

"…" Leo opened his mouth and closed it again.

Rolling her eyes, Velvet ordered, "Go to bed, Leo."

"…Fine." With a pendulant sigh, the man turned around dolefully. "Yeesh. All these years and you still are as naggy of a hag as ever." He muttered under his breath.

Velvet raised a silent, threatening eyebrow.

Leo cursed when he realized that she'd heard that. "Kidding! Kidding!" He leapt up into the air with both hands raised disarmingly. "No harm done, right, Velvet?" He grinned nervously.

"Right." And with that dry observation, Velvet promptly snatched the back of Leo's collar and dragged him all the way to the inn to force him to sleep.

"GAH! VELVET!"

The howling of the wind rattled nosily off the walls of the inn that night.


	49. C47 - Ideal

**Chapter 47 – Ideal.**

"YOU LITTLE HAWKROACH! GET BACK HERE!"

Leo's cry echoed over the surrounding waters as the man charged after his pest of a malak up the stairs of the stolen merchant ship.

A taunting yip was Hawk's reply as he snidely hopped on top of the rail just for the sake of taunting his master, a kebab held firmly in his mouth by the stick.

"That's  _mine_  you rat bastard!" Leo seethed as he pelted up the stairs towards the malak with a hand outstretched…

…Only to reach air as Hawk easily leapt from the railing onto the mast post hanging above the helm of the ship.

"HAWK!" Leo bellowed, waving his fist ineffectually.

A few meters away from him, gently managing the helm of the merchant frigate, Eizen gave him an exasperated look. "Don't you have something to do that  _doesn't_  involve all this noise?" The irritated reaper asked pointedly.

"Come on, Eizen!" Leo sputtered, gesturing at the malak nibbling on  _his_  kebab above both their heads. "That bastard took my food, and I haven't eaten  _all day_!" He glared at the completely unashamed wolf. "While  _he_ has already eaten  _two meals_  since morning!"

Eizen in turn just gave a nonchalant shrug. "You should've kept a closer eye on it, then."

Leo just glared in response. "Come on, aren't you first mate? Isn't your job supposed to be  _managing_ this sort of conflict?!"

"We're pirates." Eizen pointed out. "If anything, Hawk's behavior is completely acceptable to me."

"…Ugh." Leo rubbed his temples angrily as his stomach gave another cruel growl. "Figures." He muttered sourly.

"Here."

Leo blinked as a pure, untouched, glistening kebab was shoved in his face. His mouth automatically began to fill with saliva.

He glanced up with surprise at Velvet's unaffected expression. "…Are you sure, Velvet?" He asked hesitantly, his hands twitching for the delicious morsel in front of his.

"It's fine." She shrugged, handing him the stick. "I can eat pretty much anything, remember?"

Leo sent a glare upwards at the pup gnawing happily away on his food. "I don't suppose you're craving lesser malak right about now?" He muttered sourly.

In response, Hawk simply rolled his eyes.

"Not particularly." Velvet responded dryly, following his gaze upwards. "But you'll be the first to know when I do." She promised, watching as Hawk took a particularly large and sloppy bite of Leo's kebab overhead.

"I'll take what I can get." Leo responded as he tore into the meat with a vengeance. "Oh, gods that's so good…!" He groaned loudly through the food in his mouth.

"Leo! Velvet!"

The two of them turned their heads to where Eleanor was waving at them. "A little help, please?" She grunted as she dropped the barrel she was carrying onto a pallet.

"Yeah guys. No slacking!" Rokurou yelled from his position next to Eleanor, in the process of stowing the loose cargo with some rope. "Our numbers are hardly ideal for sailing a vessel of this size to Endgand, you know!"

Eizen nodded, glancing over at the two of them. "Get moving, you two. We can't afford to be playing around at the moment." He urged.

Leo exhaled melodramatically. "Can't even let me finish a damn kebab in peace." He muttered.

Velvet shrugged. "Maybe you should've kept a closer eye on your first one." She suggested as she began to walk down the steps to where Eleanor and Rokurou were working.

"Oh, be quiet." Leo muttered as he followed her down the stairs sourly.

Up above, Hawk merrily gnawed away at Leo's precious kebab, utterly shameless in the face of his sin.

"Alright, alright, we're here." Leo announced unnecessarily, smartly tossing his kebab stick into a trash barrel before turning to Eleanor and Rokurou. He blinked. "Say. Where's Laphicet and Magilou?"

"Laphicet's still not feeling too well after his tussle with Innominat." Eleanor explained, concern evident in her expression. "He's in his cabin resting for now. Bienfu's watching over him."

Rokurou spoke up, "And as for Magilou…" He shrugged, pushing the barrels to form a more compact arrangement. "Who the hell knows?" He grinned wryly.

"Oh no she doesn't." Velvet growled angrily. "If she thinks she can skimp out on helping us she's in for a rude awakening." Her glare zeroed in on Leo. "Leo, I'm going to need to borrow Hawk's nose for a second."

The man grinned, waving up at the traitorous pup finishing his last few bites of his kebab up on the sails. "Be as rough as you like." He encouraged snidely. "You can take  _just_ the nose if you prefer."

He smirked as the therion nodded in response and stormed away. Revenge was oh, so sweet.

"Ahem."

Leo rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes. I'm here, Eleanor. Coming." He turned reluctantly over to the woman who was in her familiar teacher-mode who gave a pleased nod in return.

Together, the three of them worked in companionable silence, loading the stray cargo around deck and tying them up in rope nets suitable for stowing below deck.

As he and Eleanor worked on gathering sets of crates onto a pallet while Rokurou hauled cargo below deck, Leo took the opportunity to finally say what he'd been intending to for a while.

"Hey Eleanor?" He prompted the woman.

"What is it?"

Leo grinned sheepishly. "I wanted to thank you for getting me out of my funk, that night before we landed on Titania."

He rubbed his cheek, the ghost of pain caused by Eleanor's slap still present. "If you weren't there to slap some sense into me… I don't know what would've happened." He sighed, resting his elbows on the boxes. "I might've even done something I'd regret for the rest of my life."

Eleanor's expression was kind.

"Well, I'm glad you didn't, Leo." She assured warmly. "And it's no problem. It's simply what is expected of a teacher should a student misbehave, after all." She pointed out smartly.

Leo deadpanned in response. "Ugh. Right." He muttered. "You and your abusive teaching tactics."

A smart finger rose as Eleanor lectured, "Remember, the quickest route to success also the hardest!"

"Oh hush." Leo moaned, covering his ears. "I'm too hungry for this nonsense."

Eleanor blinked. "But didn't we give you like a half hour lunch break?"

Leo's face darkened. "Well, it didn't help that I spent that entire half hour chasing a damn rat."

"A… rat?"

Leo nodded sagely. "A giant, furry, man-biting rat." He explained darkly. "The size of a small dog."

"A-Aaack!" Eleanor squeaked, abruptly going rigid. "There's such a thing on this ship?!" She gasped. "Is it a daemon?! Why haven't you told us of this before?!" She yelled, reaching for her spear.

Leo blinked. "Eleanor?" He asked hesitantly. "Are you afraid of rats?"

"How dare you insinuate such a thing!" She abruptly yelled in response, her fists clenched.

Silence.

"I noticed you didn't answer the question." Leo remarked wryly.

Eleanor hmphed, looking away indignantly. "Leonex Davidson, I am NOT afraid of rats! A respectable exorcist praetor such as I would be  _ashamed_ if I had a childish fear of rodents! The very thought of it makes me-!"

"ELEANOR! The rat!  _It's right behind you_!" Leo screamed urgently, pointing directly behind her.

Eleanor screamed, whipping around and slicing the air behind her frantically with her spear.

She blinked when she realized there was in fact, no giant rat standing behind her. Only a rather rattled Hawk staring up wildly at her from down on the deck, having come extremely close to receiving an impromptu shaving job.

Leo burst into snickers.

"Serves you right you little bastard." He chuckled into his hand.

The look that Eleanor gave him, however, wiped the smile right off his face.

"Leo…" The harried-looking praetor growled lowly.

Hawk gave his master a dry look.

Leo chuckled nervously. "Uh, is it too late to point out that I meant Hawk was the rat?"

Before the exorcist could do anything to discipline her misbehaving student however, a scream rattled their ears, making them turn in alarm.

"UNHAND ME! I will not tolerate this witch-abuse! Let me GOOO!" Magilou cried as she wriggled in Velvet's iron grasp as she casually strolled up the stairs onto the deck with a struggling witch over her right shoulder.

"Hush. I told you that I'd do anything to achieve my goals." Velvet remarked snidely as she walked uncaring of the screaming woman. "You shouldn't've been sleeping on the job."

"I wasn't sleeping! I was napping! There's a differene-Geh!" With a high-pitched squeak, Magilou was promptly plopped onto the deck in front of Eleanor and Leo.

Velvet dusted her hands unaffectedly, turning to Eleanor's gaze. "Now. How can we help?" She asked lightly.

"This is slavery! I won't tolerate this!" Magilou bawled as she stood up and tried to run away.

The therion casually hooked her finger into the woman's dress, halting her escape. "Magilou," she stressed in exasperation, "there's only 6 of us. We're understaffed as it is. We need you to help us with the labor." She ordered.

"No! I refuse! Anything but boring manual labor! There's a reason why I got into the witching industry!" Magilou cried as she whirled around.

Velvet raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms. "Then just cast a spell or something and do everything with magic. Isn't that what you witches are supposed to be capable of?" She asked dryly.

The witch gave her a murderous glare. "I'll just pretend you  _didn't_ just ask me to use my brilliant talent for the sake of  _chores_." She seethed.

Velvet shrugged helplessly. "I don't get it."

"Hmph!" Magilou pouted with her hands behind her neck. "I wouldn't expect a low life ruffian such as yourself to understand the brilliance of my work."

Velvet rubbed her temples in exasperation. "Just… get to work." She ordered tiredly.

"Fine." Magilou grinned, pointing an index finger to her temple. "But I'm taking my break first!" She declared, whipping around and dashing away as fast as she could.

"MAGILOU!" Velvet cried angrily.

Leo facepalmed. "Just… let her be, Velvet." He suggested dryly as he watched the witch's pink hat disappear once more below deck like a gopher returning to its nest. "You know, they say that the quickest route to success also the hardest." He quoted smartly.

Velvet gave him a look. "The hell's that supposed to mean?"

Eleanor let out a long, drawn-out sigh.

"And this is how nothing gets done around here." She muttered, massaging her temples.

Hawk gave a sagely nod in sympathy.

Leo's eye twitched. "Wha-?! Shut the hell up you kebab-thief!" He let out a cry of rage as he charged after the malak who smartly turned tail and booked it away from his master's ire.

"Come back here! I need to have words with you, rat!" Leo's yell echoed across the ship once more as the two restarted their chase.

Velvet exchanged a glance with Eleanor. "Yeah." Velvet shrugged. "I see what you mean."

Eleanor just sighed again.

* * *

Knock, Knock.

Inside his cabin, slumped over piles of sheets of research papers arrayed on his wooden desk, Leo sighed and yelled irritably to the wall in front of him, "Eizen, I know you're worried about Aifread and the rest of the crew, but me skipping my break is  _not_ going to suddenly convince the winds to blow faster!"

The door opened with a click and the chinking of chains announced the fact that it was not Eizen at the door. Leo twisted around in his chair to see an amused Velvet with crossed arms and a raised eyebrow.

"How surprisingly rational of you, Leo." She remarked wryly.

The man gave a grin in response, turning his body in the chair toward the woman. "I'm sure if it came down to it, everyone on this ship and on the Van Eltia would try their best to propel the ship with their own lungs, heedless of how stupid of an idea it is." He shrugged melodramatically. "You're all so crazy, you know that?"

The therion gave him a look of mock offense. "Careful who you call crazy. You never know what a bunch of reasonless ruffians such as us might do to a paragon of knowledge such as yourself."

She abruptly remembered why she came here. "…On that note, I came to tell you that dinner's almost ready." She announced wryly.

Leo chuckled. "Who's cooking this time?"

"Phi, of course." She rolled her eyes.

He blinked. "Wasn't it supposed to be Eleanor's turn this time?"

The woman threw a hand up in exasperation. "It was." She confirmed. "She just likes to spoil that little kid." She smirked. "All it took was one innocent doe-eyed look and a high-pitched question."

Leo grinned back. "Come on, Velvet. Don't tell me you  _don't_  feel the same urge to give the kid anything and everything he wants. I'm sure you spoil him just as much as Eleanor."

"Tch." Velvet shook her head. "I, at the very least, have restraint. Eleanor just gives him everything he wants! Him and Kamoana." She sighed in fond exasperation. "She's hopeless!"

Leo made a face. "I wish she'd done that for me when she was beating my ass in training." He sighed longingly. "I suppose I'm just not as cute as I used to look…"

Velvet pointedly didn't comment and simply gave him a flat stare.

"…Oh, come on. That's just mean."

"I didn't say anything." She pointed out.

"You don't have to." Leo retorted. "Your very gaze speaks thousands of words of derogatory insults aimed at my devilishly handsome look."

Velvet shook her head and turned to leave. "Anyways, come over in about 20 minutes." She made to leave.

"…Hey Velvet? Could I ask you something?" Leo's uncharacteristically serious voice stopped the therion in her tracks.

Velvet turned around curiously. "What's the matter?" She asked.

The man shifted in his seat, his brow furrowed. Perching his elbows on his knees and resting his chin on his entwined fingers, Leo made eye contact with the therion across the room, a serious look on his face.

"How, exactly, are the therions connected to Innominat? And Phi, for that matter?" He asked quietly, thoughtfully.

The soft creaking of the interior of the ship filled the pensive silence as Velvet's eyebrow furrowed.

"I…" She shook her head. "I have no idea, Leo. You should ask Grim about such questions about Innominat's nature."

He shook his head. "Grim's already gone through the Ancient Avarost book countless times. There's nothing in there that tells us how exactly the lives of the seven other heads are connected to the head of the god."

"But still…" Velvet's expression darkened once more as the conflict at the back of her mind sprang to the front. "If we kill Innominat…"

"Yes." Leo nodded seriously. "I agree. There  _has_ to be a connection."

He shuffled through the pages and ripped out a sheet of paper ridiculously filled to the brim with ink markings. "That's the only way it would make sense…" He trailed off, his brow furrowing as he nibbled on his quill.

Velvet walked up curiously and stared at the complex diagram laying out the table. "Damn." She muttered as she took in the wide collection of diagrams and technical notes lying scattered on the tabletop and piled underneath. She glanced at him incredulously. "You really don't take half measures, do you?" She noted.

Leo gave her a brief smirk. "Pot calling the kettle black, wouldn't you say?" With that, he turned his gaze back to the diagram in question.

He pointed to the center. "Innominat."

He pointed to various points surrounding the center. "The therions." He pointed to another point next to the center. "Phi."

With a grand gesture, he summarized the whole diagram.

"We know there's something linking all of them, and not just the Earthpulses. There's a  _specific quality_  that makes a daemon a therion, right?" He glanced at her.

She nodded absently, a thoughtful finger at her lips. "Right. The therions' ability to consume other daemons, and Phi's blue flames are all traits that spring from our connection to Innominat."

"And here's the thing!" Leo quickly snatched another sheet of paper, listing a number of theoretical arguments. "Do you remember venomization?"

She nodded. "Right. The headless swordsman on horseback in Titania."

Velvet blinked, seeing what he was getting at. "They consume daemons as well…"

"And that's the most compelling argument for such a unique connection to Innominat." Leo nodded his head. "Only the therions linked to Innominat can actually send malevolence through the Earthpulses. Venomized daemons cannot."

He shook his head. "So, there must be some inherent quality present in the makeup of a therion that connects it to the god… Which would imply the lives of the parts correlates to the whole..."

He grimaced in distaste, knowing just how horrible such a sacrifice Velvet must be considering.

He scrunched his face. "But what could it be?! How could such a connection exist?" He muttered in consternation. "How does the existence of a living being hinge on a god?" He wondered quietly.

Velvet shook her head in befuddlement. "I can't say. All I know is that there is most likely a link between us therions, Phi, and Innominat's life. How that is, or the specifics of that connection, I can't say for sure."

Her eyes abruptly refocused on Leo's eyes.

"…And why are you doing all this anyway, Leo?" She asked quietly.

The man sighed, turning away from his research to make eye contact with the woman, making his best effort to convey his dedication.

"You entrusted me with your worries, Velvet." He pointed out quietly. "And I take that trust seriously."

He absently shuffled some papers around on the desk.

"This is my way of helping. I'll try to dig deeper into the problem and see if there isn't some way to kill Innominat without killing all of the people you love." He put simply, roughly.

With a thunk, he plopped the organized pile of pages on the floor. He glanced up at her wryly. "I'm just that rational of a man."

"…Right." She muttered quietly.

Her lips were set in a firm line as she read the names on the diagram once more. Phi. Kamoana. Medissa. The others. All those people who she… loved. The people she knew she would sacrifice to erase the name in the middle.

Innominat.

Her fists curled, tendrils of malevolence seeping out through the cracks once more.

"…I appreciate the help, Leo." She intoned, not looking at the man.

"Please. Do what you can." She quietly asked.

She was willing to take any chance to avoid such a terrifying fate. Anything to help save the lives of those beloved living beings who didn't deserve to die.

Anything to save them from herself.

Leo waved her off good-naturedly. "Of course. Just leave it to me, the rational man!"

He grinned lopsidedly. "I'll try my best to help, of course." His smile turned nostalgic. "I was always best at developing theories…" He trailed off, his eyes distant.

"I'm… sure your dad would've been proud of you." Velvet assured awkwardly. "For what it's worth." She hurriedly dismissed.

Leo gave her an honest smile. "Yes… I think he would've." He agreed.

He shook his head. "Anyways," he said, changing the subject, "you go get going and make sure Phi isn't going to go set fire to the ship with his cooking."

"I'm sure he won't. He's actually a fantastic cook." Velvet instantly dismissed his concern. "And besides, Phi's not you, you know." She pointed out.

"Oh hush." Leo waved her off, dragging a fresh sheet of paper and dipping his quill as he went back to developing his theories.

"…See you later, Velvet." He muttered distractedly, his mind already back on the task at hand.

She shook her head in exasperation. "Later Leo." She murmured as she opened the door.

Velvet took a long look over her shoulder, watching her friend work so diligently to help save her from her sins. She sighed fondly. Quietly, so low that even she couldn't hear it, she breathed the words.

"Thank you." She whispered sincerely.

With that, the woman stepped out of the door and left the man to his work.

After a moment of silence, Leo sighed, dropping the quill in favor of cradling his head, staring blandly down at the scribblings he had just written.

It was all connected, he knew it! There was some way to help Velvet through investigating Innominat's connection between himself and the therions. He knew there was! He had to find it, for the sake of everyone he had come to love in this world.

So, then what the hell was he missing?!

The man continued to ponder, his mind racing in circles as he tried desperately to find a way to rationalize the existence of a god.

* * *

"Family, friends… Everything I ever tried to hold onto…" Eizen breathed as he slowly stepped through the wet grass, his coin held firmly in a clenched fist. "All of it trickled away… and fell from my grasp." He recounted soberly.

"But a certain idiot once told me…" His hard eyes rose to the corrupt image of his old friend as he quoted, "'If you can't hold something in your hand, then make a fist and take it by force.'"

The first mate lifted his fist. "This fist will take everything back." He declared.

The horned daemon Aifread clutching Laphicet as a hostage wavered, the man's voice breaking through the illusions tormenting him briefly.

In that moment of weakness, Eizen lunged.

"Just like you told me to!"

CRUNCH.

Leo and the rest of the group watched as the monster that Captain Aifread had become slumped over, Eizen's left fist lodged in the daemon's abdomen. Blood leaked from the open wound and onto the grass below.

Laphicet gasped as he stumbled on the ground, coughing as he refilled his lungs with air.

"Aaah…" A growling, sinister voice cut through the silence of the surrounding ruins. "…I know this fist." Aifread's blood-red eyes blinked, a certain shine returning to them. "It's you…"

A clawed hand rested gently and weakly on Eizen's arm. "Sorry." The dying daemon muttered wryly. "Caused you a lot of trouble, didn't I…?" A weak, foreign smile crept up onto the monster's face.

Eizen huffed lightly. "Don't worry about it." He met the daemon's eyes. "We're friends, right?" He reminded.

And just like that, the daemon Aifread had become went limp and fell forward, only to be caught by his shipmate's arms.

"Aifread!" Laphicet's gasped, running forward in horror.

Eizen gave him a simple shake of the head, closing his eyes as he listened to the daemon on his shoulder giving his last few breaths.

The chirping of the animals dwelling in the surrounding wetlands filled the silence.

"NO!"

Leo's eyes were wide as he was suddenly blinded by a piercing shade of azure blue as blue flames burst forward from Laphicet's form, converging on Aifread's body. A vast, otherworldly humming began to emit from the forces flowing through the malak.

"What the-?" Eleanor gasped.

"It's that blue flame!" Rokurou breathed.

WHOOSH.

The flames dissipated quietly, the humming dying down. In their place, a man stood. A man with long, untamed hair wearing the proud coat of a seafarer.

Magilou blinked in amazement. "A daemon changed back into a human?!"

Eizen caught the man on instinct as he toppled over, grunting in surprise at the man's true form. A pool of blood had formed on Aifread's stomach.

With burning determination in his eyes, Laphicet kneeled down on the sodden grass and pushed all the mana he could into healing the man's wounds.

"Forget it."

Laphicet blinked as he registered the rough but distinctly human voice of Captain Aifread gazing up at him with weak eyes.

The bearded man gave the kid a wry grin. "It's too late." He rasped.

"I… I'm sorry Aifread…" Laphicet breathed in consternation. "If I only knew… how to use my power…!"

Leo shifted on his feet, his eyes narrowed in thought.

_His power…_ He pondered.

"Stop crying." Eizen ordered the malak as he tried vainly to heal the pirate. "Didn't you say you were prepared for anything?" His eyes were firm.

"But… Eizen, you were searching for Aifread for so long…"

The captain huffed. "Hmph." He glanced up at his friend with a smirk. "You're still as soft as you ever were." He observed wryly.

"Boy." Aifread turned his head to the child gazing haplessly him as he lay dying. "I'll let you in on a little secret." He breathed, coughing blood. "Your… your power…" He coughed roughly.

"Your power comes from being part of Innominat." He intoned meaningfully.

Leo blinked.

Laphicet's eyes were wide.

"Which means…" The captain continued, "If you can seal off his domain… you actually got a chance of puttin' up a good fight."

"Seal off… his domain?" Laphicet asked hesitantly.

"The four elemental Empyreans." The pirate coughed. "Sleeping in the earthpulses… if you can rouse them from their slumber…" He trailed off weakly.

The group furrowed their eyebrows at this new information.

"Hurry. While Artorius and Innominat are occupied." He breathed. "They're getting ready for some… 'Ceremony of Suppression…'"

Eizen's hands were gentle as he cradled the dying man's head.

"It's now… or never, kid." A bright grin found its way onto the man's face, a shadow of what the man must've been like in the past.

Laphicet gave a determined nod. "Thank you… Aifread." He mumbled respectfully.

"Heh…" Aifread closed his eyes with a smile. "I'm just sad I can't go with you…" He met Eizen's gaze. "It sounds like a goddamn blast…"

The reaper's eyes were hard. "I won't apologize." He pointed out.

Aifread's left fist met Eizen's stomach with a light thump, a mere mockery of what the man had done to him.

He grinned. "You shouldn't. I'm grateful." His smile turned nostalgic. "You always kept things from gettin' dull." As his eyes closed, he whispered his final words.

"If we ever meet again… Let's raise some hell… Eizen."

And like that, the Captain of the Van Eltia passed away, a smile on his face.

"…Yeah we will." Eizen promised. "See you, Aifread." He breathed, his eyes closing in recognition of the death of a friend.

The silence reigned once more.

Leo's face was somber as he watched Eizen lay his friend's corpse gently down onto the grass in silence. At the same time, his mind was racing with possibilities with the new information.

Slowly but surely, a hypothesis was beginning to take form.

As Zaveid and Eizen muttered threats to one another, clashing creeds once more over the captain's body, Leo's hand silently reached into his jacket pocket. pulled out his notebook and pencil.

He touched the tip of lead onto the page and hesitated for a single second.

And then he began to write down his thoughts as fast as possible.

A cold gust of wind blew, rustling the hair on the Captain's blood-soaked body. Everything else around him became irrelevant. The Baird Marsh faded away, leaving only the rational scientist and his thoughts. The scratching of his pencil on paper became the only defining feature in his world.

Leo would make sure the man's death wouldn't be for nothing. He was sure he was the only one who could.

His father always said he was the creative one, after all.


	50. C48 - Silence

**Chapter 48 – Silence.**

The sun shined brightly through the transparent canvas above as the Van Eltia sailed steadily onward, unceasing in its exploits against the Abbey. The spray of the ocean whisked upwards upon collision with the hull of the vessel, occasionally reaching up onto the deck where the crew worked unceasingly to support the efforts of the Lord of Calamity and friends.

Leo let out a sigh, looking up from his workbench and gazing around at the people sharing the sunbaked deck with him.

Kurogane and Rokurou were up on the upper deck, discussing Stormhowl no doubt. Eizen was in the process of attaching a new letter to a Slyphjay. Velvet and Laphicet were chatting quietly near the front of the ship. Magilou was resting her head on a barrel, evidently enjoying another nap. All around them, the pirates continued to work.

He really did admire the drive of the Van Eltia's crew.

The death of her captain had in no way diminished the spirit of the rowdy pirates crewing her. On the contrary, it would seem that everyone was even more determined to push onwards and give the Abbey a right ass-whupping.

An ass-whupping that would come in the form of waking the four elemental empyreans by sacrificing the souls of exorcists in the flames of Mount Killaraus.

"Whachya doooin?"

Leo blinked at the childish inquiry, swiveling in his stool to his left where Kamoana stood with her hands twined behind her, her face in a happy grin as she swayed gently side-to-side.

"Hey Kamoana!" Leo greeted with a grin, gesturing to the workbench he was sitting at, upon which sat a vast network of complicated blueprints and prototype parts. "I'm building something." He explained simply.

The girl's eyes were wide as she took in everything arrayed on the table.

"Whoa!" She gasped. "That's so cool!" She blinked, turning to the man. "Uh…" She giggled sheepishly. "What is it?"

Leo leaned back in his stool with a wry smirk. "Guess." He suggested, waving a hand at the parts.

"Hmm…" The therion's eyes furrowed in consternation. "Are you making another cannon?!" Her eyes were wide. "That's so cool, Leo!" She grinned, jumping up and down.

"Nope. Not a cannon." Leo dismissed. "Try again!"

"A… new sword?"

Leo grinned wryly. "Not even close!"

Kamoana pouted. "Come on! Just tell me already!" She pleaded.

"Not unless you guess it first." Leo denied with a smirk on his face.

The little therion's pout deepened. "Fine! Don't tell me then!" Kamoana huffed. "Then I won't tell you what Hawk did to your coat while you were sleeping!" She stomped her foot on the deck firmly.

It was amazing how quickly Leo's smirk dropped.

"What." He hissed. "What did that mutt do to my precious-?!"

The cruel little imp capitalized on her advantage with a sly grin. "You have to tell me what you're making first!" She chimed.

"But-!"

"No buts! Tell me!" Kamoana grinned shamelessly.

Leo glared wordlessly at the hateful little girl.

"The most important aspect of combat."

Leo looked over as Eleanor strolled over with a smile on her face. "Knowing when you have been beaten." The praetor pointed out wisely.

"Eleanor!" Kamoana grinned up at the woman happily.

Eleanor smiled kindly down at the beaming child. She gestured at Leo's workbench. "So, do tell. What is all of this?"

The man's eye twitched. "Come on." Leo muttered sourly. "You can't both team up against me. That's cheating."

"All's fair in hate and war!" Kamoana declared, pumping a fist in the air.

Eleanor chuckled, crossing her legs idly. "That would be love and war, Kamoana." She pointed out mildly.

"Oh." The little girl giggled. "I guess so, huh?"

Leo rolled his eyes, leaning back in his chair and popping his joints with a relieved groan. "Anyways, I'm going to have to disappoint you two." He grinned wryly, gesturing at the blueprints on the table. "It's a secret. My lips are sealed."

"Boo!" Kamoana stuck out her tongue at the man. She turned to the woman standing by her side instead. "Eleanor!" She chirped. "I taught Grawky and Hawkie a new trick! Come see! Come see!" She latched onto the woman's arm while bouncing up and down.

Eleanor chuckled. "Alright, alright. I'm coming." She met Leo's eyes with a look of wry exasperation as she was dragged off.

Leo gave her a mock salute as they left, leaving himself alone once more with his work. He shook his head and got his mind back on track, focusing his eyes once more upon the sunbaked parchment arrayed on the desk before him. He picked up his pencil, resuming his scribbles on the notes held down by paperweights, finalizing his blueprints.

There was no way he'd be letting that innocent little girl die without a fight.

He licked his lips, making some final adjustments and observations to the diagrams of the devices he'd be creating. It would be hard, really hard, to do something of such a scale on a foreign world with such limited resources.

But Leonex Davidson was never one to make life easy for himself. That much had been established.

He gave his cramped hand a rough shake before picking up his pencil once more putting the finalizing touches on his diagrams. It was almost done and ready for production.

"What is all this?"

He glanced up at Velvet as she walked over curiously, eyeing the foreign articles taking up space on the workbench in front of him.

Leo tapped his pencil thoughtfully to his lips as he responded absent-mindedly, "Research." With a firm nod to himself, he reached a decision and scribbled down his conclusion at the bottom of the page.

Velvet picked up a piece of paper at random from the messy workbench and narrowed her eyes at the writing. "…You can read this?" She asked in astonishment.

Leo sent her a brief glare before returning back to his work, shuffling his finalized papers around. "Yes, I know." He drawled irritably. "My handwriting's atrocious. I've heard it a thousand times." He waved an indifferent hand in the air.

"Atrocious doesn't even begin to describe this!" The therion turned the page upside down. "Which way is even up?" She muttered.

With a grunt, Leo snatched the page from Velvet and gently placed it back under its assigned paperweight. "Listen." He snipped shortly. " _I_  can read it and that's all that matters." He shrugged helplessly. "And anyway, I don't think you'd be able to understand it even if it  _was_ legible."

"Oh?" Velvet put a hand on her hip as she looked down at the man. "How especially snotty of you." She remarked dryly.

Leo angled his nose directly up towards the sky. "Why, of course." He let out in a nasal voice. "Such an uneducated  _peasant_  such as yourself could never understand the deep nuances of my own vastly superior intellect." He let out a scoff and swatted her away. "Why don't you go and play in the mud or whatever you animals do." He hmphed.

Velvet's eye twitched, unimpressed.

"…So, what are you researching?" She asked curiously, her eyes roaming the strange-looking diagrams spread out across the workbench.

Leo put down his pencil and gave her a meaningful look. "…It's a secret." He explained vaguely. "My lips are sealed."

Velvet caught on to his meaning. "Alright." She dropped it.

"Say," Leo asked abruptly, turning back to his work, "I don't suppose you could give my coat a sniff or something to see if there's anything… I guess you could say…  _unusual_  about it?"

The therion's eye twitched dangerously.

"A… sniff?" She growled.

Leo rubbed his temples as he squinted down at his handwriting, internally debating the best placement of a fixture on his diagram. "Kamoana heavily implied that Hawk had done something to it last night." He explained absently. "I was hoping that you could help me out with your enhanced daemon senses?" He glanced up hopefully at the woman.

Velvet's brows narrowed in anger. "I'm going to just pretend that you didn't just ask me to sniff your coat like a dog." She snarled.

Leo gulped. "Er-" He began.

"Ohoho!"

Magilou chortled as she strolled up to the two of them, her hands resting behind her neck. "Leo trying make you take part in some sort of weird fetishistic activity?" Her smile was fanged. "How quaint."

"Wh-what?!" Leo nearly fell of his stool.

Velvet's face was a bright red shade. "He was doing nothing of the sort!" She cried angrily.

"Velvet?"

The three of them turned to see Laphicet walking up curiously. "What's wrong? Your face is all red…?" He asked, his head cocked to the side.

"It's nothing!" She yelled back at an alarmingly loud volume.

The malak flinched back with wide eyes. "O-oh. Okay." He muttered hesitantly.

Leo glared at the smirking witch standing behind him. "…Your existence makes me suffer." He muttered.

Magilou shot him a careless smile. "All the better." She replied loftily.

The man just sighed, resting his pencil on his temple.

Laphicet shook his head in confusion, dismissing the matter, and instead turning his attention to the items on the workbench. "Hey Leo?" He asked. "Are you designing something?" He looked up at the man curiously.

Leo nodded. "Almost done, actually." He confirmed. He tapped the tip of his pencil on various final drafts laying around the table. "The next time we make port, I'll be headed to the nearest smithy and forging some stuff together for a few prototypes."

The malak's eyes were wide as he took in all the writing and diagrams. "Wow!" Laphicet blinked in confusion. "I… can't tell what any of this stuff is." He looked up at the man. "What is it?" He asked. "They look like drawings of some sort of apparatus!"

Velvet asked dryly, "Are you talking about the handwriting or the actual thing?"

Magilou leant in and observed the papers with wide eyes. "Geez, Leo. How the heck is anyone supposed to make heads or tails out of this stuff?"

"It looks like a different language!" Laphicet's voice was astonished.

Leo's eye twitched.

"Listen, alright?" He grounded out through gritted teeth. "It's plain common-tongue, same as everyone else's." With a huff, the man gathered the papers together in a neat and organized stack. "You plebeians just don't understand the delicate nuances of my fine scripture."

"More like you're just lazy." Velvet pointed out.

"Oh hush." Leo retorted, sliding the large stack of papers away neatly in his bag. "And for your information, Phi, it's a secret." He answered.

Laphicet blinked. "A secret?"

Leo nodded with a casual shrug. "I can't risk any of you letting Kamoana know." He explained lightly. "That little brat might've won the battle…" He clenched his fist dramatically. "But she will not win this war!" He declared heatedly.

"Oh…" Laphicet trailed off hesitantly. "I… I don't understand." He admitted.

"Pish and piffle." Magilou shrugged helplessly. "Everyone and their secrets, am I right?"

"Right." Velvet muttered, looking away vacantly.

Silence settled between the four of them as Leo shuffled around, neatly tucking away his research notes in his bag.

"We're making good time."

Everyone turned as Eizen walked over, hands on his belt. He began, "The only problem is that ceremony that Artorius was going on about. We don't know how long it'll take." The reaper shook his head.

"Aifread said they called it… the 'Ceremony of Suppression.'" Velvet pointed out thoughtfully, leaning back on the now empty workbench. Her gaze drifted off into the horizon, her brow furrowed in thought. "Most likely… It's how Innominat plans to release his power." She concluded.

"Most likely." Eizen agreed soberly. "He hasn't absorbed Laphicet and your despair, so he should still be incomplete…" He shifted on his feet in thought. "But if his powers fully awaken…" He trailed off.

Leo finished the sentence with an edge to his voice, "The suppression of humanity. The end of free will as we know it." He shook his head in disgust as he stood up, lifting up his bag and settling it on top of the workbench with a thunk.

"What a load of dogshit." He spat.

"I can hear them celebrating now." Magilou commented wryly. "'The uglinesses of the human soul are suppressed!'" She mocked. "'And the world is free of malevolence! Hurrah, hurrah!'"

"Hurrah indeed." Leo muttered sourly. "Who needs to enjoy life? Hell, the conversation we just had would be deemed useless by those pricks."

"Quite." The witch agreed with a grin. "All that matters is efficiency, no?"

Laphicet shook his head. "Robbing humanity of its will… They'll be just like I once was…" He murmured, a fist to his chest.

Abruptly, he gasped.

"…Something's coming!"

Leo blinked. "What?"

And then a flash of white overtook his vision.

* * *

"Uuuugh…"

Leo moaned, cradling his head as he flopped down on the solid dock of Port Zekson, the world spinning around him. "This… sucks." He muttered.

By his side, Benwick let out sympathetic groans. "Hng… I feel like some… jerk played tug of war with my brain." He complained, massaging his head while the Slyphjay on top gave him a reassuring chirp.

Hawk whined as he licked his master's face in concern.

"Quit it." Leo moaned as he weakly swatted the malak away. "I still haven't forgiven you for stealing my kebab, you know."

"I think you should."

Eleanor spoke as she walked up to the man lying on the docks as the rest of the crew of the Van Eltia disembarked dazedly behind her.

"If it weren't for Hawk's presence," Eleanor explained, "Innominat's grasp on your free will would've been much, much stronger." She nodded her head at Benwick, whom Eizen was presently trying to whip into shape. "The rest of the crew are in much worse shape."

Leo huffed, carefully getting to his feet. "…Alright, alright." He gave Hawk a soft smile. "You're forgiven. Happy?"

Hawk whined, his tail sagging behind him as he slumped downwards.

"What? What else do you want for me?"

"I think he's trying to say sorry." Laphicet conjectured as he and the rest of the group approached Leo and Eleanor. "Since he's a lesser malak, you don't have the same protection as Eleanor and Magilou does." He explained.

Leo's eyes softened as he glanced down at the pup anxiously gazing up at his master. He gave a smile. "Yeah, yeah." He whispered, softly kneeling down and tenderly rubbing the wolf's head. "Like I care." He smiled softly.

Hawk yipped happily up at him.

"Don't worry about me, Hawk. You little mutt." Leo whispered softly.

"Look!" Eleanor piped up, drawing everyone's attention. "It's that merchant! You're all right!" She addressed the man walking vacantly towards the group on the docks.

The merchant's movements were stiff and mechanical, unvaried and monotonic.

"I do not deserve to be all right." The merchant responded in a flat, monotone voice as he walked robotically past the group. "I used people." He admitted flatly. "Stepped on them just to make a profit. I even aided wanted criminals so that I could expand my business."

"My soul is black with ugliness… and can never be forgiven."

Leo's eyes widened as he realized where the man was headed. The end of the docks.

_A black soul._

"Huh…?!" Eleanor gasped. "No, wait!" She pleaded as she sprinted forward towards the suicidal man. "Stop!"

"The world needs to be purified of malevolence." The merchant observed detachedly. "I don't belong here. I have to die." He stated soullessly as he proceeded on. "I have to die."

"I have to die." He repeated calmly.

"No! It's not right!" Eleanor cried as she latched onto the merchant's body in a vain attempt to pull him away from the edge of the docks.

The sound of ironclad boots on stone stopped Leo's advance towards the struggling pair as Velvet made her way over.

SMACK!

With a crash, the man fell to the floor, groaning wordlessly as his mind whirled with contradictory thoughts, cradling the chin the therion had sent a left hook into.

Velvet's eyes were cold as she glared down at the groaning merchant. "You can die if you want." She spat as she put her hand on her hip. "But saying you ' _have_ ' to die is a good way to make my blood boil." She snarled.

"…Those awakened to their own malevolence seek to end their lives." Magilou announced lightly. "Welcome… to Artorius's uncompromising world of reason!" She declared.

Leo shook his head in disbelief. "Christ…" He muttered under his breath as he tried to comprehend the enormity of the changes happening around him.

Innominat's domain…

Eizen's fists were clenched with distaste. "First they steal humanity's rudder… And now they want to say who lives and who dies?!" He exclaimed.

Velvet spoke up promptly. "We should find out what's happening here." She announced, her eyes hard. She glanced over at a distraught Eleanor. "Unless you'd rather not see…" she offered openly.

Despite the situation they were in, Leo found himself feeling strongly warm with the genuine concern in Velvet's words. She'd gone a long way.

"You're right… I wouldn't." Eleanor shook herself and straightened, meeting the Velvet's gaze solidly and firmly. "But I won't hide from the truth any longer." She promised.

Velvet gave her a nod, respecting the woman's choice.

She turned to the rest of the group. "Before anything else, we'll need to confirm just how far this power reaches. Let's head to Loegres."

Leo winced, rubbing the back of his head. He spoke up, "Just out of curiosity," He asked Velvet, "did you  _really_  have to thrash me that hard back on the Van Eltia?"

Magilou grinned evilly. "But of course!" She exclaimed. "Our Velvet knows you like that sort of thing, right?"

Leo's eye twitched. "Oh, be quiet."

He sighed, his gaze instead travelling from the groaning man at their feet to the vast expanse of Port Zekson, silent as a grave.

"But really." Leo murmured softly. "To think Innominat's domain is  _this_ strong…" He trailed off in disbelief.

Eizen nodded soberly. "Benwick." He turned to the weakened shipmate. "Stay close to the other therions." He ordered. "Their domains will cancel out Innominat's."

The shipmate nodded. "Believe me, first mate." Benwick clutched at his head with a groan. "I'm not going anywhere at the moment." He noted wryly.

Leo gave the man a pat on the shoulder. "Stay strong. We're up against a god, after all."

Benwick chuckled dryly. "I believe it." He muttered.

Eleanor shook her head. "We few are standing against a truly monumental force…" She murmured.

"Really makes you think, huh?" Leo breathed absent-mindedly as he stared at the silent docks all around him. "Just how powerful Innominat truly is."

She nodded her head wordlessly in response. Guardedly, the group began to make their way through the silent Port Zekson.

Through the dystopian land subjugated by a god.

* * *

"Mommy! I'm scared! Mommy!"

The cries pierced the dark hallways of the dungeon underneath the Loegres Villa, reaching the group as they charged their way down the stairs.

Leo cursed and hefted his rifle, hot on the heels of the rest of the group as they ran to try and save the girl and Prince Percival whom had been abducted by malakhim hunting those left with free will in the silent capital of Loegres.

It was a nightmare. All of it.

"Aaaauughhh! Save me, m-mommy!"

The group turned the corner, the full horror of what was happening coming into view.

The screams echoed off the immense chamber where the malakhim were circling in; the one that had previously contained the therion Griffin. In the center of it all knelt the prince, hugging the crying girl as a purple channeling circle ate away at their wills like a leech.

"Gnngh…" Percival's groans accompanied the girl's screams. "My mind is…!" He groaned.

"He's eating their wills directly!" Velvet realized as she ran at the head of the group down the stairs.

"Hah!" Magilou let out a laugh as the group leapt from the stairs and charged towards the winged malakhim surrounding the channeling circle. "With an entrance like this, it's almost like…"

Velvet scoffed as she rushed forward, calcite sword shooting out of its sheath. "Like we're a bunch of heroes."

"Hey no fair!" Magilou pouted as she skidded to a stop, throwing her guardian-wielding hands out and conjuring a small fireball at the more distant malakhim. "You're supposed to say, 'like what?'"

Leo came to a stop and hefted his rifle. The safety disengaged with a click as the man lined up the iron sights.

CRACK!

As a winged malak tumbled from the air, a bullet hole in her left wing, Leo cocked his rifle and turned his head over to the center of the chamber. "Prince!" He yelled as he dodged a diving malak's spear thrust. "Get out of there!"

"Over here!" Laphicet called as he began to cast a shield arte. "I'll protect you!"

The prince gasped in relief as the circle faded, the horde of winged malakhim instead focusing their joint efforts on eradicating the deviants from their ideal society. "Thank you all!" The prince returned gratefully, gathering the child in his arms and making a break for it.

Magilou flicked her hands, engulfing a distant malak in lethal amounts of electricity. "What're you doing thanking us? We're the villains, aren't we?"

Eleanor huffed as she parried the spear of a diving malak and retaliated by shoving the spear directly through the malak's heart, killing it. "I wouldn't be so sure!" She yelled hotly, her eyes glancing briefly at the little girl in the prince's arms.

"Careful!" Rokurou warned as he ran to her side, parrying the dive of another malak. "These guys are tough."

"So are we!" Velvet yelled as she extended her daemon claw, raising it high up above a group of malakhim charging them.

"DISCORD!" She roared.

CRASH! CRASH! …CRASH!

With a crazed scream, the woman tore the malakhim to shreds, her massive appendage tearing deep gouges into the stone flooring and rending the winged angels into bits of blood and gore.

"Yep." Rokurou observed mildly as he parried the spear of a diving malak. " _She_  definitely looks the part of villain, at least." He commented.

"Well, you know what they say." Leo remarked dryly as he lifted his rifle, aiming at a circling malak.

CRACK!

CRACK!

Leo watched with satisfaction as one of the two rounds connected with the flying malak, sending her tumbling down to the ground with a crash. "Looks can be deceiving." He pointed out.

"Heh." Eizen let out roughly as he stood his ground, waiting as a group of malakhim dove towards him. With a clink, his coin sailed up in the air.

"You think you can dodge?" He chuckled dryly. "Just try!"

The diving malakhim clashed with the man as his fists flew, the crunches of their impacts ringing throughout the chamber.

"PERFECT MAYHEM!"

With a massive smash, the malakhim were all cast backward with fatal internal bleeding, smashing and tumbling limply onto the stone floor.

With a savage grin, Eizen casually swiped his hand in the air, catching the falling coin in his palm without looking.

"Well!" Magilou observed with a grin, "Someone's angry today!"

Leo huffed, taking a good look around for any leftover malakhim to shoot. "I think he has good reason to be at the moment." He commented, raising his rifle.

CRACK!

With a scream, the malak tumbled down to earth, her right wing having gone limp from the bullet to the ball joint.

CRUNCH.

With a vicious yell, Velvet squeezed the life out of the malak she had caught in her claw who exploded in a burst of blood and gore.

An evil monster devouring an angel of good.

The squelching of blood on stone became clearly audible in the now quiet chamber. Everyone let out a breath, glancing around warily for further threats.

"I think that's the last of them." Leo remarked as he reloaded his rifle, the clicks of his weapon echoing in the darkened chamber.

"Prince Percival! Are you all right?" Laphicet asked anxiously as he dispelled his arte, turning to the man as he stood up in relief.

The man in the formal tailcoat let out a breath. "Yes…" He shook his head. "Thank you…" He chuckled dryly. "Well, I know I can still feel scared out of my wits, at least…"

"It's all right now."

Leo turned to Eleanor's voice, finding the woman kneeling in front of the child Prince Percival had let go. "We'll find your mommy and then we'll-"

"Mommy was executed." The girl mumbled monotonously.

Eleanor let out a soft gasp at the girl's flat face.

"They killed her because she stole food to give to me. But that's okay. They had to. Mommy was acting against reason."

Leo shook his head sadly as he took in the girl's soulless eyes. Another victim. Softly, he made his way up behind a distraught Eleanor and put a hand on her shoulder.

She shuddered. "So, this… this is the true face of their 'suppression…'" She muttered.

Prince Percival nodded. "This is the ideal world sought… by Shepherd Artorius." He explained with hard eyes. "As long as malevolence gave rise to daemons, this was the only way. That's why the kingdom of Midgand consented to his plan."

"But I will never consent." He promised quietly.

Together, the group stared at the girl, whose will had been stolen.

* * *

Prince Percival let out a shaky breath as the group came to a halt in a secluded Loegres alleyway. His eyes had been gaunt and haunted, ever since they had let the girl go.

"Come on, Prince." Leo urged softly, breaking the silence. "There's still a chance to stop this all from becoming reality. Don't lose hope."

Laphicet nodded. "Yeah…" He trailed off, looking at the distraught prince. "Hey, prince." He piped up abruptly. "Griffin is doing well!"

"Oh yeah!" Leo grinned, mentally praising Laphicet for his empathy. "He and Hawk are getting along just fine. Kamoana's been teaching the two of 'em more tricks!"

The prince gave the two of them a genuinely thankful grin. "Good… That's good." He nodded. "I'm happy… Truly." He closed his eyes softly, savoring the emotion for all it was worth.

"Until now, I thought I was just a tool to serve my country…" He glanced up at the sky, listening to the silence surrounding the town. "But when my feelings were being torn from me… I felt myself want something."

"'No!' I thought. 'I don't want this! I don't want to lose who I am!'" He looked down, soberly. "I understand the true horror of this ideal world now…" With a renewed determination in his eyes, the ruler of Midgand turned to the daemon standing by his side.

"I know it's selfish to put this burden on you… but I beg you." He pleaded. "Stop all this. Stop Shepherd Artorius."

Velvet's eyes were pensive as she considered the request.

"…You said something to me once. 'A bird that cannot fly is no bird at all.'" She quoted. "And now I say this to you." She met the man's gaze. "People stripped of their feelings can never truly be alive."

Leo looked to the sky, the words resounding in his head. "Flying…" He muttered under his breath. His mind turned to the answer he had given Shepherd Artorius Collbrande, all those months ago.

That birds shouldn't fly.

Was his answer still the same now…?

"That's how… I used to be." Laphicet murmured, breaking Leo from his thoughts.

Velvet's gaze lingered on the malak. She turned back to the prince. "We're going to defeat Artorius." She promised soundly. "We're going to make this world one where we can be ourselves."

She crossed her arms lightly, a smile playing on her lips.

"We're doing it for us. Not for you." She declared.

The prince chuckled softly. "…You've changed… haven't you." He observed happily.

"You really have."

The group turned in surprise as Tabatha made her way into the alleyway, a benevolent smile wrinkling her aged face. "You used to be a sword, wielded by your own hatred." She recounted. "But now… you're in control." She met the woman's gaze.

"You're the one who swings the blade."

Velvet let out an amused hmph. "Even if I still don't know when to sheath it."

Leo let out a chuckle, patting her on the back. "Baby steps, Velvet. You'll get there."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "I wouldn't be so sure of that." She returned dryly.

Tabatha shook her head, taking a good long look around at the group arrayed out in front of her.

"Then I'm going to be selfish, too." She remarked. "And… as just another flawed human being…" Her gaze fell upon the Lord of Calamity.

"I will offer a humble prayer that you succeed." She gave a slow nod of respect.

A prince and a criminal mastermind, standing firmly together behind a monster fighting the savior of the world. It was telling.

Leo grinned at said criminal mastermind. "I don't suppose you could promise me free drinks if we do?"

Tabatha chuckled heartily. "Hardly! One could hardly run a profitable business with such a prolific alcohol drinker such as yourself drinking for free."

"You know," Rokurou observed with a smirk on his face, "I think you just got snubbed by an old lady for your alcohol tolerance."

Velvet laughed, shifting on her feet. "That mustn't feel too good." She commented lightly.

Leo gave them all glares. "I take it all back. Innominat can have my emotions for free."

Eizen shrugged. "Well, it's your choice. Everybody else," He waved a hand, "let's get back to the Van Eltia. Leo's staying."

"I was  _kidding_ , Eizen!" Leo growled.

Eleanor shook her head fondly. She turned to the rest of the group. "So, what now?" She asked.

"We stick to the plan." Velvet decided. "Wake up the four Empyreans and take Innominat's domain away from him."

Prince Percival spoke up. "If that's the case, you should know that Artorius said the ceremony wouldn't be complete until the Scarlet Night."

Everyone shifted with the new information.

Leo's mind whirled. "So that gives us about three weeks." He muttered, making the calculations in his head. "It's a week-long trip to Hellawes. The trek through Northgand will take a few days as well. But who knows what might delay us?"

Eizen shifted. "It's a gamble." He summarized. "Will they complete the ceremony first, and complete their domination over human will, or will we awaken the Empyreans, and drive them out?"

"Well! Moping won't get us anywhere!" Laphicet piped up with a determined glint in his eyes. "Let's head to Mount Killaraus!"

"Right!" Eleanor nodded determinedly. "It's time to suppress the suppression!" She declared with her hands on her hips.

"Hey, nice one." Leo grinned wryly. "How long did it take you to come up with that?"

"Oh, be quiet." She rolled her eyes.

Together, the group turned as one, a new determination in their strides as they walked through the empty streets.


	51. C49 - Trust

**Chapter 49 – Trust.**

It was a quiet night on board the Van Eltia.

The creaking of the ship accompanied Leo's steps as he made his way through the lantern-lit hallway, his coat rustling softly on his back in the wind. Ever so softly, the walls surrounding him rocked lightly with the waves as the ship travelled unceasingly onward through the night, shifting the shadows cast by the simmering lanterns back and forth.

It was late, Leo reckoned as he trotted through the narrow corridors with purpose. He'd lost track of the time down here in his cabin, toiling away over his work. He hadn't even slept ever since the ship had left Port Zekson a few days ago.

He'd had too much to think about.

Blearily, the man rubbed his eyes as he lifted his hand to gently tap on the cabin door he had stopped in front of. He knew Velvet would hear his knocks, keen as her hearing was.

True to his prediction, the door promptly slid open and the familiar raven-head appeared in the portal, surprise on her face.

"Leo?" She blinked in surprise, registering the man's exhausted demeanor. "The hell are you still doing up? You look terrible."

Leo waved her concern away. "I'll sleep after this." He reached into his bag and pulled out a strange-looking handheld apparatus, showing it to the woman.

It had clearly been crafted using improvised methods with whatever tools had been available at the time. Gold-studded pads formed the handle where Leo held the device lightly with his right hand. Various strange-looking holes dotted the machine in seemingly non-intuitive places for no discernable purpose. All in all, the device simply looked foreign.

Velvet stared at it curiously. "Is this what you were designing earlier?" She asked, abruptly recognizing the unique design from the man's schematics

Leo nodded. "Yeah." He blinked, abruptly realizing his manners. "Er, mind if I come in?"

She gave him a look. "I don't care." She opened the door wider for him.

Thanking her, the man stepped over the high threshold and entered the therion's personal cabin. It was small, just like his, with nothing but the bare essentials placed strategically as possible around the room. Evidently, she'd only used the room in a purely utilitarian fashion, as to be expected.

He ignored the rest of the details and settled himself on the woman's chair, pulling out a stack of papers from his bag and arraying them on the empty table. He placed a pencil on the top of the stack, ready to use for annotation and note-taking.

"So, you going to tell me what's going on?" Velvet prompted as she shut the door behind her.

Leo nodded tiredly, turning to the woman watching all of this with a raised eyebrow. "Yeah." He shook himself, forcing his eyes open. "Right."

"Are you sure this can't wait?" Velvet's concern was clear. "You'll mess up your internal clock if you don't sleep regularly."

"No, this can't wait." Leo shook his head forcefully. "I need more data, if I'm to get anywhere close to solving this puzzle." He held up the device in his hand. "And this is a big part of it."

"And this is…?" Velvet prompted impatiently with her arms crossed.

"I'd…" Leo trailed off brokenly. "I'd explain it to you, but it would take far, far too much time." He shook his head. "I'll let you know the results once I'm done, I promise. Anyways, I just don't want to disclose a hypothesis that may or may not be correct."

"A hypothesis?"

Leo nodded seriously, meeting the woman's eyes. "A hypothesis on gods. And how they work."

He shook his head. "Anyways, here." He handed the thing in his hand to the woman. "Hold this in your left hand, just like this.."

Velvet gave him a dubious look.

Leo rolled his eyes. "Don't give me that look. I'm a professional, alright? Trust me." He pushed the device further towards her.

"Alright." The woman shrugged, taking the foreign metal device from his hand. It was heavier than it looked. "Now what?" She asked, gingerly adjusting her grip on the device so that her hand encompassed all the gold plating just like Leo's hand had. She took a closer look at the device.

It was made up of a weird amalgamation of various alloys and metals; some she recognized, others she didn't. There must've been some rhyme or reason to the design as it was obviously calculated down to the millimeter, but Velvet couldn't figure out for the life of her.

"Hold it. Just like that. Don't move."

With brisk movements belying his exhaustion and fatigue, Leo reached into his bag and pulled out various additional devices, hooking them up together with what seemed to be pieces of thick string. The ends clicked soundly and metallically together with foreign zapping noises that made the hairs on the back of Velvet's neck stand up.

"Leo…" She growled warningly. "I swear, if this thing blows up…"

The man waved a dismissive hand in her direction, maintaining his focus on setting up the devices in a precise manner. "Yes, yes, you'll eat me." He acknowledged absently. "Now stay there and keep a good grip on that. Don't let go of it, no matter what."

"Why do I get a bad feeling about this?" Velvet muttered.

" _Trust_  me." Leo stressed as he turned to her, two black and red cables in each hand. "Alright. Now," he raised the cables in his hands, "this might sting just a  _tiny_  bit. Just don't drop it, no matter what."

Velvet just gave him a deadpan stare in return.

Leo grinned sheepishly at the woman's death glare. "Well, here goes nothing!" With that ominous statement, the man plugged both lines into the sides of the device Velvet was holding.

…BZZT!

Velvet winced as a foreign tremor flew through her body, originating from the blasted thing clutched in her hand.

"Leo…!" She gave the man a glare. "The hell was…?"

"Shht!" Leo shushed her with a hand, his hand scribbling furiously as the things on the desk began to come alive. Various bright lights shone in various obscure fixtures, indicating something that obviously held great meaning to the man that held none for her. He hummed thoughtfully, scribbling data down unceasingly onto the pages in the aftermath of the experiment.

"You can put that back down on the table, by the way." He advised absently, his brow furrowing in concentration.

Shaking her head in exasperation at being led around by the nose, the therion dropped the machine onto the table and observed the machines Leo was hurriedly analyzing. "Is this… technology from your world?" She asked curiously.

"Not really." Leo grunted absent-mindedly as he flipped the page, finding a blank data graph to fill in. "It's materials from  _your_ world abused and manipulated to act as closely as possible  _to_ technology from my world." He shook his head in exasperation. "You have no idea how long it took for me to find a somewhat suitable substitute conduit for copper in this world."

She blinked. "…Are all people from your world as smart as you are?" Velvet asked as she picked up a page of finished notes, squinting at the handwriting in frustration.

It just looked like a bunch of numbers and abbreviated data types.

"I wouldn't call it entirely smart, just," he searched for a way to say it while he continued to pour words onto the graph. "…I'd say that everyone in my world just has their own field to be smart in." He grinned absently. "Mine in particular just happened to encompass a lot of other fields."

Velvet shook her head. "Laphi would've gone absolutely nuts if he'd known such a place existed out there." She muttered.

Leo chuckled softly in mutual amusement at the image, his pencil slowing for a few seconds. "The kid was nearly dying of shock when I told him about metal boats. Imagine what he'd say of the flying metal boats."

Velvet gave him a look.

"…I'm not kidding!" Leo shot her a reproachful look.

"Anyways, that doesn't matter now." He huffed, finishing off his final notes at the corner of the page before putting the pencil down and cradling his cramped hand. "What matters is that I'm all done! THANK CHRIST!"

With a relieved sigh, the man promptly triggered a switch on one of the devices, causing all the lights to abruptly go out. He slumped back in the chair with a groan.

Velvet blinked. "So… what was all that about?"

Silence.

"…Leo?" She let out as she glanced over worriedly at the man. And then sighed as she saw his face.

Right on cue, the man let out a massive snore, a thin tendril of drool already leaking from the man's mouth.

"How the hell does anyone fall asleep that quickly?" Shaking her head in exasperation, Velvet promptly and unceremoniously gathered the man up in her arms and plonked him onto her own bed, his snoring uninterrupted by the movement. He was as sound asleep as a rock.

Looks like she'd have to find somewhere to sleep above deck. With a sigh, Velvet shook her head and left her own room, Leo's snores following her out the door.

Always the strange idiot.

The creaking of the ship continued. That night, she'd dream of souls and rebirth.

* * *

"Bieee-choo!" Bienfu sniffed miserably as he floundered in the air. "It's even colder here than last time!"

Trotting through the snow besides the malak, Eleanor bunched up the coat she was wearing closer to herself as she shivered. "You're right..." She breathed, rubbing her gloved fingers together. "It was merely freezing before. Now it goes straight to the bone!"

Bienfu happily pounced towards the exorcist. "Allow me to warm-!"

SMACK.

Leo rolled his eyes as the perverted normin reeled in the air, groaning in pain. "Really though." He muttered. "It's frickin' freezing." He shuddered, pulling his own layered coat closer to his body. "I think I'll freeze to death long before we reach Meirchio."

Down by his feet, Hawk whined sympathetically, gingerly stepping through the snow and trying to keep his fur coat dry.

"Hey, furball." Leo addressed his malak. "I don't suppose you could heat us up or something with an arte?"

The malak just huffed indignantly in response.

Laphicet chuckled, looking around the group as they followed the long snow-covered path up north. "Cheer up, Leo! We'll be there before you know it!"

"Or I'll die from frostbite." Leo grumbled.

Eleanor sighed in exasperation, rubbing her temples. "It would seem that your wit is even more brittle than last time as well."

"Oh, come on." Leo gave her an offended look. "Give me some cre… cre…!" He blinked, suddenly slowing down. "A… ACHOO!" He sneezed abruptly, sending Hawk pelting away from him in an effort to dodge the spray.

Eleanor blinked. "What's gotten into… you… A… ACHOO!" The exorcist abruptly sneezed. She shuddered vigorously. "H-Hawk, are you  _sure_  you can't help us out?" She asked weakly. "Please?"

Hawk just huffed irritably in response.

Magilou sniffed loudly, hugging her own coat closer to her body. "…Wahchoo!" She groaned, bent over in agony. "Zo… gold…!" She muttered. She shook her head, exclaiming, "If it's this bad here, I dread to think of what the Gaiburk Ice Field is like!"

Velvet gave her a look. "The tundra past Mount Killaraus? Is it really that cold?"

Leo glared at the woefully underdressed yet unaffected therion strolling through the snow behind him. "Oh, be quiet." He bit out. "Damn daemons and their damn resistance to cold…"

Rokurou grinned. "I've stayed up in the mountains many times for my training." He recounted smugly. "With all the snow, I'd imagine it'd be…" He hesitated briefly, his voice growing more and more nasal. "…pretty rough for a… normal human…"

"Ah- …Achoo!" He sneezed suddenly.

"Why are you sneezing all of a sudden?" Velvet asked with a raised eyebrow. "Like Leo said, Daemons aren't supposed to feel cold." She pointed out.

"No." Rokurou sniffed defensively. "A snowflake just fell up my nose, and-"

"Achoo."

Everyone stared as Velvet's face turned red after her own poorly-suppressed sneeze.

Rokurou deadpanned. "You're sneezing, too."

Velvet's fist bunched in defense. "My hair was blowing around and tickled my nose." She claimed.

"Right." Leo drawled dryly.

Velvet shot him a wordless death-glare in response.

Laphicet rubbed Hawk's head absent-mindedly as he trekked forward in thought next to Eizen. "But… according to the old book I read, it isn't supposed to snow much around Gaiburk." He pointed out.

Eizen nodded. "Because of lava from the volcano and the ground's natural heat." He pointed out. "I bet the book calls it the Gaiburk Plains, too."

"Yeah!" Laphicet chirped, picking up Hawk as he trotted along. "It said that Mount Killaraus was highly active, and that the area used to be famous for its hot springs!"

Hawk yipped, licking the excited malak holding him captive.

"But now it's…" Eizen trailed off as he noticed the rest of the group staring blandly at the three malakhim.

"…What?" He raised an eyebrow.

Laphicet and Hawk cocked their heads. "Why are you all staring?" Laphicet asked.

Velvet observed dryly, "They're all expecting you to sneeze, I think."

Leo nodded sagely. "It's only natural, of course. It's preordained that all must follow society's norms!"

Magilou grinned and pointed at the boy with a flourish. "That's right, kiddo! Now, give us a good show!"

"You too, mutt! I believe in you!" Leo encouraged brightly.

"Ah…" Laphicet responded hesitantly, exchanging a glance with Hawk.

"Ahh… Ahh…!" Everyone watched in suspense as both malakhim tilted their heads, scrunching their eyes in concentration.

Hawk shook his head in disappointment, whining sadly.

"Sorry everyone." Laphicet shrugged sheepishly. "No sneezes here…"

Everyone just groaned in mutual disappointment.

"I'll practice for next time…" Laphicet promised dejectedly.

Eizen huffed. "Ugh. Good grief…"

Leo shook his head fondly as the group continued to march onwards, through the vast expanse of snow.

Ever so slowly, his mind began to wander back to the same area of thought that he'd been trapped in for so long.

Keeping pace at the back of the group, Leo sent a thought to the device in his head, fiddling mentally with the various menus and settings projected into his vision. Graphs and analytical data popped up all over the interface, displaying various readings and measurements taken by the device about the world he walked in. He skimmed through all of the information and technical jargon with impressive familiarity.

He nodded to himself. It was just as he thought.

Absent-mindedly, Leo took out his notebook and copied down some more data in a partially-filled graph of readings. Everything he had been taking had been following the same trend. All of it was necessary in confirming his hypothesis.

But he was still missing the key element.

His eyes shifted, dismissing the augmented interface and looking far off into the distance, where the shadow of Mount Killaraus could be barely discerned on the frigid horizon.

When the empyreans awoke… that would make or break everything he had up until this point.

It was essentially a gambit.

He huffed. Well, that was what science was all about, after all. He thought dryly. With a snap, he shut his notebook and replaced it back into his coat, his mind continuing to ruminate over his theories as the group continued onward through the cold.

"ACHOO!" Leo groaned miserably as another sneeze forced its way through his nose.

Still, why the hell did everything have to be so damn difficult?

* * *

The snow fell lightly, blanketing the glistening town of Meirchio in a brilliant sheen of white. Steam-powered multi-colored lamps hung from poles dotted around the main thoroughfares of the village, gently squeaking in their constant vigilance against the encroaching snow. Far off in the distance, a dog barked angrily before being quickly shushed by its master. A chill wind blew through the quiet, peaceful town.

Leo sighed in exhaustion as the group made their way into the snowy village, their steps landing on the slick stone mixed with ice partially melted by the brilliant heated steam lamps turning placidly above their heads.

He looked around, watching the people nesting in a snowy village at the northern edge of the world. "It's… so peaceful." He commented softly, unwilling to break the tranquility.

"Yeah…" Laphicet nodded absent-mindedly, looking around.

The occasional fellow traveler walking on the same road gave them looks that showed how obviously they stood out as foreigners, but nothing else. No suspicion, no hostility.

It seemed like a quiet, peaceful existence.

Rokurou grinned. "I overheard one of those gate guards talking about a hot spring in the inn. And then I had a thought. What a better way to prepare for the murder of legates than with a nice relaxing soak in boiling water?"

Eleanor shot him a glance. "Must you be so blithe of what we are about to do?"

"Hey, there's no point in worrying about it, am I right?" The daemon pointed out with a shrug. "What happens, happens." He stated with a grin.

Leo nodded absent-mindedly, glancing at the therion walking in the snow ahead of the group. "Right…" He trailed off, looking around. "But we need some way to lure the legates over if we're to harvest their souls. And we don't have much time left."

Eizen nodded. "We've got a week and a half left until the Scarlet Night, upon when Innominat's Ceremony of Suppression will finish, and the world's emotion will be sealed away."

"So…" Magilou pointed out, "That leaves us about zero time to go and hunt them down." She shrugged. "What a pain! If only they would come to us instead."

Leo's brow furrowed.

Rokurou shrugged. "If they did, I wouldn't complain. Like I said, hot springs." He pointed out.

Eleanor shuddered, wrapping her coat tighter around herself. "Well… T-that actually… doesn't seem that bad of an idea, honestly." She admitted shyly with a shiver.

"Hah!" The dual-swordsman grinned. "Told ya!"

Quietly, Leo picked up his pace and caught up with the black coat-wearing therion and gave her a meaningful look. "How're you holding up?" He asked.

Velvet gave him a look. "I should ask you that." She pointed out wryly. "I don't think I've seen you sleep more than a wink ever since you've started work on your little hypothesis." She raised an irritated eyebrow. "Which you still haven't told me about, by the way."

Leo huffed and waved a dismissive hand. "Patience is a virtue, my dear therion."

"I'm hardly known for my virtues." Velvet pointed out.

"Oh, right." Leo grinned. "You're an 8-foot tall gorilla with the head of a lion with mouths for hands. How could I forget."

"Yes, how could you."

They rolled their eyes in sympathetic amusement as they continued walking, taking in the sights of the calm village around them.

"…I'm getting close." Leo murmured quietly.

Velvet glanced at him in surprise.

Leo shook his head. "It's still just a guess at the moment though. I have supporting evidence, but the  _real_  data will come from the awakening of the four elemental empyreans. There are just too many factors to take into account at the moment to say anything for sure."

"And you said it relates to Innominat's true nature?" Velvet asked softly.

Leo nodded. "Yes but… I won't say anymore." He shook his head. "No point in counting your sylphjays before they've hatched."

"Not unless you're Benwick." Velvet pointed out wryly. "I swear, that man guards those eggs like they're his own."

Leo laughed, shrugging his shoulders. "He does have a tendency to act like a mother hen." He pointed out.

Velvet shook her head. "…Well, I'll leave it up to you then, Leo." She gave him a smile. "Looks like you aren't completely good for nothing."

Leo sighed woefully. "I resent that. Seriously, can't you just say something nice  _without_ undermining it in the same sentence?!"

"Fine." Velvet rolled her eyes.

"…Thank you, Leo. You're the only one who can do this for me." She smiled genuinely. "I appreciate you sticking around."

Leo hummed thoughtfully with a grin on his face. "…I guess that'll work."

His grin morphed into a smirk. "Although a kiss would also work." He pointed out playfully.

SMASH!

"GAH! I was fucking kidding! Goddamnit woman!" Leo roared, hopping up and down in the snow while clutching his trodden left boot.

Velvet rolled her eyes in response. "Idiot." She muttered.

And just like that, the idea came to Leo. He froze, the dots connecting in his head.

Velvet cocked her head curiously. "…Leo?" She asked the stationary man.

The rest of the group trotted over.

"What's going on?" Eizen asked.

Leo shook his head, a grin forming on his face. "…Come on. I have an idea." He beckoned them over as he set off, headed towards the main square.

Eleanor sighed, resting a hand on her forehead. "Why do I get a bad feeling about this?" She asked.

"That's my line." Velvet muttered as she began to follow the man reluctantly.

Together, the group followed the man as he strolled determinedly through the snow-covered streets, arriving at the open square in the middle of town. All around them, pockets of winter coat wearing villagers went about their daily lives, gossiping and chatting quietly in the snow.

All of a sudden, the quiet was broken abruptly when Leonex Davidson leapt onto the frozen fountain and bellowed out at the top of his lungs.

"PEOPLE OF MERCHIO! GREETINGS!" He roared.

As the townsfolk immediately turned to the man curiously, Velvet put a palm to her face. "The hell is he…?" She muttered quietly.

Leo straightened his back. "I am an exorcist praetor of the Abbey! Please! Hear my words!" He declared.

A wave of mutterings and gasps fluttered through the nearby residents as they began to gather into a crowd around the exorcist. A call rang out over their heads. "Welcome to our humble city, sir praetor!" A murmur of similar sentiment resounded from the gathered citizens.

"Thank you all." Leo nodded appreciatively at the respect of his audience. "Good folk, I have been sent from the Abbey up to your home far, far in the north for one reason, and for one reason only."

SHING!

With a flourish, his gauntlet blade slid out from its sheath as he waved his hand up high in the sky. The loud screech of metal promptly silenced the crowd as they watched with bated breath at the newcomer.

He made eye contact with as many audience members as possible. "I am here to vanquish the Lord of Calamity!" He declared heatedly.

A rush of muttering followed his statement, and what such a declaration meant.

By Velvet's side, Magilou took in a breath. "Ooh… That's what he's up to!"

Eleanor gave her a look. "What? What the hell is he doing impersonating a praetor?!"

"Quiet." Eizen shushed as the man in the center of the square began to speak once more.

"I have received reports from sources that shall not be named that a dastardly daemon has been spotted in the Gaiburk Ice Fields, not far from this town!" He declared. A rush of worried whispering followed in the wake of his words. He promptly slid his sword back into his gauntlet and threw his hand out to halt the worries of the villagers.

"Do not fear, good people." He assuaged. "For I," He crossed his heart bravely, "will face off against the daemon myself." His clenched fist raised high up into the snowy air. "The story of the salvation of this world shall begin here, in this very town. This I swear, on my sword." His last words were a mere whisper that somehow carried across the still square.

"Laying it on a bit thick, isn't he?" Magilou remarked dryly.

Laphicet chuckled. "I guess he is. I wish Kamoana were here to see this."

Velvet blinked in confusion.

"But be warned!" Leo yelled, his volume dramatically louder. "If the unspeakable shall occur… and I…" Leo took a shaky breath, "should fall…"

He paused dramatically, letting the audience fully see his bravery and determination.

"…Should I fall," Leo intoned softly, letting the wind carry his voice across the square, "I need you all to run."

He shook his head fervently. "This daemon would devour each and every one of you. And that…" He clenched his fist, meeting the scared eyes of the populous. "…That is something I would never,  _ever_ want to happen."

He took a breath, letting the words sink in.

"Now!" He roared, flourishing his coat behind him like a cape. "Come and face me, Lord of Calamity!" His yell echoed off the cliffs behind him.

The townsfolk glanced at each other wide-eyed. Did he mean…?

"That's your cue! Go on!"

Velvet grunted in confusion as she registered Magilou's attempts to push her forward through the crowd. "The hell are you-?" She whispered back angrily.

"It's your time to shine, my rising star!" Magilou grinned fanatically. "Break a leg!"

Rokurou grinned. "You'd better put your back into it if you wanna beat Leo's stellar acting." He suggested.

"T-this isn't a play!" Velvet protested angrily. "Why-?"

"Come on!  _Go_! Your audience awaits!" And with that declaration, the witch gave Velvet a massive shove, pushing her stumbling forward into the empty square and into the view of hundreds of villagers.

Velvet froze as she whirled around in shock, a deer in headlights.

"Ah… So, the Lord of Calamity shows herself at last."

Leo's sly words brought Velvet's gaze to the man as he leapt off the fountain and landed heroically on the snowy stones she stood on.

Confused murmuring rose in the background as the man walked slowly towards the woman, his eyes bespeaking much determination and vigor. With a flourish, his gauntlet blade flew out to be raised high above his head in stylistic determination.

"Come and face your demise!" He roared as he charged.

Velvet blinked, instinctively releasing her own gauntlet blade and blocking the attack, their blades locking as they fought against each other's strengths.

"What the  _hell_ are you doing?!" Velvet seethed quietly under her breath.

Leo cursed. "Damn. I forgot you have stage fright!" He muttered in frustration.

Leo abruptly roared, pushing Velvet's sword away from his and twisted his leg out in a kick. She dodged the kick easily. The crowd gasped as the two clashed swords once more, in what was their eyes a fierce battle between the epitomes of good and evil.

"Come on, Velvet!" Leo whispered fiercely. "Just act like this is a normal sparring session!" He urged, whirling around and slicing his sword horizontally through the air.

Velvet glared at him as she leapt backwards in a dodge before charging forward once more with her sword held out in a forward stab. "Easy for you to say!" She seethed lowly as she passed him by, whirling around with her sword held out high.

Their blades clashed once more with a clang, both of them grunting loudly at the impact.

"COME ON, LORD OF CALAMITY!" Leo bellowed loudly, pressing his offensive with a vast rain of sword swings. "Show me your full power! I can take it!" He declared.

He smirked cockily as their blades locked once more. "Or are you nothing but a worthless, weak old hag?" He goaded right to her face.

The spectating group of daemons, malakhim, and exorcists winced, hard. If there was one way to get through to the therion Velvet Crowe, it was by pissing her off.

Her glare was vicious. "…Oh,  _you asked for it_!" She snarled.

Leo gulped. That might've been overdoing it, in retrospect.

SQUELCH.

All around them, screams erupted as the people watched in horror as a giant grotesque daemon claw extruded from the strange woman's arm.

"Th-the Lord of Calamity!"

"It's her! It's really her!"

With a savage scream, Velvet threw herself at Leo, swiping her claw, sword, and boots at the man wherever she could; an utter whirlwind of chaos. The crowd gasped as the praetor grunted, backpedaling quickly as possible as the daemon's violent assault continued.

"Sh-shit! N-no! I won't be bested by such a-ARGH!" Leo's cry of pain horrified the townsfolk as he was bodily hurled towards a conveniently large mound of snow in the corner of the square, softening his impact.

"AaaaaHHH!" He screamed in pain regardless, terrifying the spectators to no end.

Slowly, menacingly, Velvet glared at the man as she slowly advanced up to his helpless form lying on the snow.

"Now… what did you call me?" She seethed.

Her claw descended, encasing the man in an iron grip and lifting him easily off the ground. His feet left the ground, his arms pinned helplessly at his sides. He was utterly at her mercy.

Leo gave a sly wink to the woman holding him captive. "I was kidding! Geez, woman!" He whispered back wryly.

Velvet rolled her eyes in response.

"ARGH!" Leo abruptly burst out in apparent agony. "IT BURNS! OH, IT BURNS! SHE'S EATING ME! NOOO!"

On the other side of the square, Laphicet and Hawk exchanged deadpan looks. "Yeah…" Laphicet agreed quietly. "That's a bit too much."

Hawk whined sympathetically.

Eleanor just kept the palm on her face in wordless embarrassment.

All around the group, folk began to panic as the man writhed in the horrifying daemon's unrepentant grasp, dying before their very eyes.

Picking the cue up from Leo, Velvet turned her head and put on her coldest façade, all the while trying not to roll her eyes at the man's overt screams in the background.

"…I have a message for the Abbey's legates." She called out.

The people froze in terror at the voice of the Lord of Calamity.

"On the next Scarlet Night, I will offer a sacrifice to Mount Killaraus, and strip Innominat of his power!" She turned her glare back onto Leo. "I dare them to stop me!" She roared, clenching her daemon claw around the exorcist in her grip.

"I am corruption made flesh! Velvet, the Lord of Calamity!"

"RUN! Run for your lives! PLEASE! I beg of you all! AAAAaaaGHH!" Leo screamed as he thrashed in the woman's grasp in apparent death throes, choking to death on his own blood.

Naturally, mass hysteria followed his plea.

Magilou's cackling rang out over the screaming of the townsfolk. "Bwahaha! This town is ours!" She danced around happily as the people scrambled all around her. "Flee to the south, puny humans, while your tears dot the snow!" She cried.

Laphicet exchanged incredulous looks with Rokurou. Eleanor just rubbed her temples in exasperation. Eizen watched it all, mildly amused.

"Hurry, before our dark mistress sucks the marrow from your very bones!" Magilou cackled.

Quietly, Leo exchanged a wry glance with the daemon holding him gently in her grasp. "I think she's enjoying herself  _way_  too much." He whispered.

"You're one to talk." Velvet deadpanned back as the screams continued in the background. She shook her head in quiet exasperation. "You could've told me your plan from the start, you know." She pointed out.

Leo grinned wryly back down at her. "But then where would the fun be in that?"

"I rest my case." Velvet deadpanned.

Leo shook his head fondly, a grin on his face.

The two of them stayed there in that pose as the rest of the screams filtered out of the air, their play having reached its conclusion. A man held in the deadly grasp of a friend, trusting her with all his heart.

"I think that's all of them." Eizen called out as the group made their way through the empty square to the two of them.

"They filed out quick." Rokurou observed wryly. "Leo's act must've been quite convincing."

"Nah." Leo shrugged off as Velvet released him, landing solidly on his feet and brushing the snow off his jacket. "I think Velvet's just got that  _vibe_ , you know? She's a natural."

The therion rolled her eyes in response. "Right."

Laphicet grinned happily. "You did great, Velvet!" He chirped. "You were really convincing!"

Velvet's eyes softened as she took in the malak's praise. "Thanks, Phi. I guess."

The malak beamed in response.

"Hahah!" Magilou sang as she trotted over, a quaint spring in her step. "That was splendid! We should do this more often!" She suggested.

Leo gave her a deadpan. "Next time, you be the one who dies on stage." He rubbed his throat irritably. "Ugh. Too much screaming for one day, that's for damn sure."

Velvet shrugged. "It went well. Except…" She trailed off, narrowing her eyes at the gleeful witch. With a light smack, she cuffed the back of Magilou's head.

"Ow! What was that for?!" Magilou yelled angrily.

"There will be no sucking of marrow." Velvet was firm. "My sister taught me proper table manners."

"Aw." Magilou sighed helplessly. "What a waste. The marrow's the tastiest part!"

"Haha!" Laphicet chuckled. "It kinda is." He conceded.

Eleanor's smile was pleasant. "At least now… the citizens of Meirchio won't be swept up in our fight." She pointed out.

Velvet's gaze fell.

"They already are." She muttered quietly. "We just tore their homes and livelihoods away."

Leo promptly wrapped a cheerful arm around the therion's shoulder, to her protest. "Come on, Velvet! Don't be like that." He grinned shamelessly. "It was for a good cause."

"And what cause is that, might I ask?" Velvet's raised an eyebrow at the man latching onto her.

Leo grinned. "Three words. Hot springs, baby!" He yelled happily.

Abruptly, Rokurou let out a whoop. "Attaboy Leo!" He yelled, giving the man a high-five. "That's what I'm talking about! A whole town's worth of hot springs all for us!"

Leo beamed back at the man. "Hell yeah! I'm freezing my ass off here!" He yelled.

Eleanor just sighed in exasperation. "Not you too, Leo…" She muttered.

She caught Velvet's conflicted gaze. "…Regardless of how you see it," Eleanor stated with determination, "I thank you for what you've done, O fearsome Lord of Calamity." She bowed dramatically.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that, O exalted Praetor of the Abbey." Velvet shot back with a smirk.

Leo grinned easily as the group fell into a discussion about the logistics of what to do with the town until the legates arrived. His eyes watched as Velvet contributed, a light smile on her face.

He was glad he could help.

The snow began to fall heavier, continuing its non-stop attempts at enveloping the quiet, empty town in its frigid embrace.


	52. C50 - Aurora

**Chapter 50 – Aurora.**

A week and a half.

That was most likely how much time they had until the legates arrived from Loegres, and also how much time they had until the Scarlet Night and the finalizing of Innominat's control over humanity's free will.

Naturally, Leo wouldn't be spending the free time twiddling his thumbs.

The man padded softly on the carpet as he traversed the warm, empty inn hallway, glancing idly outside as the snow fell heavier upon the empty town. Heated steam vents ran through the walls, warming up the interior to an almost toasty degree, forcing him to walk around without his coat on. He sighed softly in contentment as he walked, savoring the quiet atmosphere.

There were benefits to being part of the Lord of Calamity's group, he supposed wryly as he let himself into his room, a warm, luxurious suite he had claimed for himself the moment the group had split up to explore the abandoned town.

With a groan, he settled himself onto his plush chair and tucked himself in, placing his bag on the table in front of him. Deftly, the man pulled out various metallic components ranging from large to tiny in size, arraying them out in a calculated fashion on the table.

With the last piece on the table, Leo nodded in satisfaction and pulled out his schematics.

Quietly, the man labored away. Time became an irrelevant, abstract concept as he burrowed himself deep into his work.

Metallic parts were connected with other metallic parts. Makeshift batteries were charged and discharged. Sensitive, rudimentary sensors were positioned and adjusted. Colored florescent light bulbs flashed and indicated the statuses of various circuits, showing the path electricity was taking through the arrayed logic gates.

Leo's hands were never inactive. He shifted in his seat, switching rapidly and as quickly as possible between his experiments and his data reports; a large stack of paper that had grown almost alarmingly over the days.

It almost made sense. Almost.

Abruptly, Leo was jolted out of his work by a knock on his door.

"Leo?" Laphicet's voice rang out through the wood.

Quickly, the man switched his power sources off and thrust the whole array of devices into his bag, turning as the malak and Hawk entered the room. "Hey, Phi." He greeted. "What's up?"

Laphicet cocked his head, looking around. "You've been in here a while Leo…" He pointed out worriedly. "Don't forget to take care of yourself, okay?"

Hawk whined sympathetically, trotting forward and leaping up to the man's lap.

Leo laughed, petting the malak. "Thanks, but you don't have to worry about me, Phi."

Laphicet nodded. "Alright, if you say so." He shook his head, abruptly remembering why he had come. "Oh, right! We just got a slyphjay from the Van Eltia."

Leo blinked. "Oh? What was the message?"

"Benwick and a group of other pirates are headed over to Meirchio. Apparently, he has a delivery for Eizen. Kurogane has something to discuss with Rokurou as well." Laphicet explained.

"Oh! That's good to know!" Leo grinned. "We won't go stir-crazy waiting for the legates to get here."

"Yeah…" Laphicet trailed off, looking away. "Um… Leo?"

The man blinked at the malak's hesitant tone, turning his chair to face the kid. "What's on your mind, Phi?" He prompted.

The malak played with his hands. "Has Velvet seemed a little… off to you, lately?" He asked quietly.

Realization dawned on the man's face. "So… you noticed." He murmured quietly.

Laphicet blinked. "Do you… know what's bothering her?" The malak asked, looking up curiously at the man.

Leo nodded freely. "…Yeah." He admitted. "I do."

He got up from his chair with a sigh, Hawk leaping from his lap as he did so. He made his way over to the window, gazing out at the quiet town. His mind was worried, as always, when it came to his friend Velvet Crowe.

The woman who was willing to sacrifice everybody she loved for her selfish needs.

A selfish, irredeemable embodiment of human sin, Melchior had called her.

Regardless of how hard he tried to help her, in the end, he could only hope that she'd find her way to open up to those close to her.

"I… trust her." He murmured. He shook his head, turning to the malak watching him across the room. "I trust that she'll talk to you. I'm sure about it." He promised. "She's just that strong of a person." He intoned quietly.

The falling snow outside the window framed the man as he looked away, a troubled expression on his face.

Laphicet nodded slowly. "…Okay." He agreed. "If you're sure, Leo, then I'm sure she will." He let out determinedly.

The malak trotted up slowly to Leo's side, watching the snow fall outside together in silence.

Laphicet spoke softly. "You two are really close…" He observed. "I'm glad you're here with us, Leo." He grinned up at the man.

Leo returned it. "Yeah. It's good to be here." He agreed. "It's nice to feel like I belong…" He trailed off, his eyes creeping towards his hastily stuffed bag stowed underneath his table. His secrets.

Quietly, he turned back to the white landscape outside. High in the frigid sky, uncaring of the snowfall, a hawk soared.

Flying.

Leo's brow furrowed.

Outside, a vicious snowstorm began to brew.

* * *

A thick layer of snow crunched underneath Leo's boots as he trudged through the town of Meirchio. High above him, a magnificent wreath of bright colors draped itself through the heavens. The conditions had all come together to form the brilliant work of natural beauty in the night sky.

It was the night of the aurora.

The man made his way aimlessly through the town, with no clear destination in mind. The legates would be coming soon, knowing that this would be the group's last-ditch attempt to seal off Innominat. Both sides would have nothing left to lose.

Leo sighed. It was no use worrying about it now.

"Hey! L-Leo!" The man in question turned over to the speaker, a pirate running up to him frantically. "I d-don't suppose you know where-"

Leo stopped him right here. "Hawk's over by the inn." He grinned wryly. "I'm sure that's what you wanted to know, right?"

The other man chuckled sheepishly, shivering up a storm. "Sorry." He mumbled. "It's just that it's so cold out tonight that we just can't possibly work anymore if we don't have a portable heater around with us!"

Leo huffed. "Good luck trying to convince him to help you out. My advice is," he put a brotherly hand on the man's shoulder, "give him lots of treats." Leo shrugged helplessly. "He's completely got the upper hand on you pirates and he knows it."

The pirate sighed in resignation. "Tell me about it." He moaned. "Argh, why did the skipper have to forget to bring the snow gear!"

Leo shrugged. "Hey, if it's any consolation…" He grinned. "Orthie and Russ should be by the inn too. If Hawk asks for too much, you could always try and ask the dogs for arte help." He put a thoughtful hand to his chin. "…Well. If you could manage to catch the cowards, that is."

The pirate sneezed violently. "Ugh!" He shuddered. "I'll take what I can get. Thanks, man!" With a wave, the man ran off as quickly as possible towards the inn, shivering and cursing the entire way there.

Leo shook his head fondly, going back to his walk.

He walked by a group of chattering pirates on break, huddled around a steam lamp for warmth. All around the main thoroughfare, similarly poorly cold-prepared pirates could be seen hurrying around in the cold, carrying various objects and helping consolidate the resources of the abandoned town to help transform it into a temporary hideout for the group. They'd been doing this for almost the entire week since they'd arrived, running back and forth endlessly despite the freezing cold.

Inevitably, Leo's mind turned to the work he himself had been doing this past week. He pulled out his notebook as he walked, flipping through the various completely filled pages of data and notes. There was nothing left to it. All that was left was the key experiment.

His gaze rose to the mountain looming above the town.

"LEO!"

"GAH!" The man jerked abruptly, leaping up in the air and sending snow flying upwards. "Goddamnit Kamoana!" He swore, glaring at the grinning little she-devil beaming up at him.

"Come on! Come on! Let's go!" She urged, tugging at the man's arm.

"Wha-? Hey!" Helplessly, Leo was dragged onwards through the snow towards the edge of town. "Could you at least tell me where the heck we're going?!" He cried.

"We're going to play hide-and-seek with Eleanor and Dyle, of course!" The girl drawled as if such a fact were as plain as day. "Now hurry! They're waiting for us!" she urged.

"Gah! Alright, alright!" Leo petulantly let himself be dragged bodily through the snow towards the frozen docks of Meirchio.

"We're heeere!" Kamoana announced happily as the two of them made their way over through the quiet, empty freight area to the frozen docks where Eleanor and Dyle stood watching in amusement.

Leo groaned as the little monster finally released her death grip on his hand, falling to his knees in the snow and clutching his bruised appendage with a moan. "Christ. I swear, this little girl's a monster even ignoring the whole therion business."

Dyle chuckled sardonically. "Velvet's right. You really are the girliest man of us all."

Leo shot him a glare. "Says the man without a tail." He pointed out.

"Hey! That's crossing the line, mister!"

Kamoana giggled. "Dyle's got no tail! Dyle's got no tail!" She chanted, her voice echoing off the empty docks around them.

"Now you're just being mean!"

Eleanor sighed, shaking her head and kneeling down to Kamoana's level. "So! Do you wanna go first?" She offered happily.

"Do I?! Of course, I do!" Kamoana sang. "1…" She immediately began counting, covering her eyes with a grin.

Leo exchanged incredulous looks with Dyle. "H-hey!" Leo sputtered. "Give us a warnin-!"

"2…"

"This ain't looking good, Leo." Dyle observed worriedly. "We'd better split!"

"3…"

Eleanor nodded. "Right! Let's go!"

As the therion counted down, the three of them ran off, making sure to circle around as quietly as possible so that there would be no way the girl could hear which direction they'd gone in.

Being a somewhat novice hide-and-seek player, Leo nonetheless tried his best to scope out the most ideal spots in the Meirchio docks for hiding. It was a good place to play this game, he mused. Nobody else was here, and it was a nice and safe place, isolated from the rest of town while not open to the outside world.

Their own little slice of heaven.

"42…"

"43…"

Quietly, the man threw a glance over his shoulder at the therion, making sure she wasn't looking, before tip-toeing over to an abandoned warehouse, slipping inside through an open door and closing it behind him.

The inside of the building was dark and dingy, smelling of seawater and rotten fish. Leo made his way quietly through the bottom floor, his eyes peeled above for any good perches to hide on.

CRUNCH.

"OW!" Leo squeaked as he hopped back, clutching his boot.

A simultaneous squeak emitted from the person who had stepped on him. Eleanor hissed angrily at the man, "Damnit Leo! What are you doing here?!"

Leo glared at the praetor. "This is my warehouse! Go find your own!"

"I was here first!" She hissed back.

"Aren't exorcists supposed to put the lives of others before their own?" Leo snarked back, standing his ground.

"I could hardly call myself a conformist exorcist these days." Eleanor retaliated. "Now get out of here before Kamoana-!"

Both of them froze as the door on the far side of the room creaked open, an ominous shadow filling the square of light on the floor.

"Eleanoooor… Leeeoooo… Dyleee… Where are you…...!" Kamoana sang as she padded inside the warehouse, her bright therion eyes roaming the dark interior of the building.

Both former student and teacher exchanged panicked glances and looked around frantically as the therion neared their position behind a pile of crates in the corner of the warehouse.

They didn't move, clutching their mouths as the little monster snuck around, peeking underneath tables and inside boxes. Leo exchanged a glance with Eleanor.

They were done for.

Quietly, Kamoana stood up and turned around to face the boxes in the corner of the storehouse. Slowly… ever so slowly… her steps neared their position.

Leo and Eleanor braced for the worst. A soul-startling "Boo," or something along those lines, most likely.

CRASH!

"Damn it all to hell!" Dyle's automatic curse outside the warehouse elicited a jerk from both hiders. Evidently the clumsy unbalanced daemon had managed to break something outside.

Instantly, Kamoana whipped around, her hair flying behind her, and sprinted out towards the noise. "I'M COMING DYLE!" She announced happily.

"N-no! I, I'm not Dyle! I swear!" Came the unconvincing response.

"Oh yeah?! Prove it!" Kamoana shouted as she leapt out of the warehouse, the door clanging shut behind her and plunging the room back into darkness.

"Oh gods." Eleanor breathed, instantly sagging against the wall in relief. "I thought that was going to be it." She muttered.

Leo chuckled dryly. "Man." He commented. "It's a shame they never taught hide-and-seek in the Abbey." He shook his head hopelessly, glancing around. "Now that I think about it, I don't think this was such a good place to hide."

Eleanor remarked dryly, "Your powers of observation always astounded me back then as well."

"Oh hush." Leo shot back, experimentally testing his weight on the crates before scaling them. He sighed as he leaned back on the crates, dangling his legs easily in relaxation. "…This is nice, isn't it, Eleanor?" He muttered quietly.

The praetor nodded, herself also climbing up the crates and taking a seat on a crate nearly on level with the man. "Yeah…" She shook her head.

A content silence fell between the two, remembering the old times and contrasting them with the new.

"…There must be a way." Eleanor whispered.

Leo turned to look at her.

"A way to make a better world for everyone." She elaborated, looking forward distantly. Up above, the creaking of the ancient warehouse continued monotonously. "Humans… daemons… malakhim…" She met Leo's eyes happily.

"And… I'm thankful that you helped show me the truth. Thank you for everything you've done for me, Leonex Davidson."

Leo smiled softly. He patted the exorcist on the shoulder, grinning. "Don't worry about it." He assuaged. "I didn't do anything. It was all you, I assure you."

Eleanor just scoffed lightly. "You don't give yourself enough credit, Leo." She smiled. "I think… that moment you told me about how you saw Hawk as a friend, not a tool, a part of me started to realize what malakhim really were."

She sighed, her smile fading. "And yet still… I followed the Abbey's reason." Her fists clenched. "And now look at the result of their reason…"

Leo nodded sagely. "…You know," He began softly, "The world isn't just black and white."

Eleanor gave him a reproachful look. "You would think I would know that after all this!"

"Yeah, I know you do." Leo leapt off the boxes and turned to the woman meaningfully. "My point is, we exorcists have a gift, you see." He grinned. "Unlike daemons, or crazy Shepherds, we humans are a mix of emotion and reason."

"You, Eleanor, have always had your own unique, purest blend of human-like emotion and reason." He grinned happily. "If there's anyone who could bring about such a world of humans, daemons, and malakhim, it's you. I know it is." He assured her.

Eleanor closed her eyes, a genuine smile on her face. "…Thank you, Leo. Your words mean a lot to me." She met her friend's face. "They always have."

Leo let out a soft whoop. "Well, my job as a friend has been accomplished!" He gave her a mock exorcist salute. "Always happy to help, master."

Eleanor rolled her eyes. "And you're still as weird as ever." She pointed out.

"And I still resent that sentiment." Leo ground out.

Eleanor laughed.

Outside, the brilliant shimmering lights of the aurora tinkled gently in the night.

* * *

"It must feel weird, huh?"

Velvet looked up as Leo made his way over to her, settling down on top of the warehouse next to her. He clarified, "Being a good guy, for once."

Velvet looked away, watching as Kamoana, Eleanor, Laphicet, Bienfu, and Dyle all played together down by the docks. The sounds of their happy chatter reached the two of them as they perched on the roof, the aurora framing their silhouettes in the night.

Her gaze was distant as she watched Laphicet giggle as he played tag with Kamoana. "…I'm not."

She shook her head. "A… part of me realizes just how horrific Artorius's plans for the world really are." She clenched her fist out in front of her. "I'm sure that even if I hadn't wanted to kill him before… his twisted notion of reason would've changed my view."

Leo watched wordlessly, his eyes filled with worry. "…But?" He prompted quietly.

She let out a breath, dropping her fist and staring out into the frozen bay. "…But no." She muttered. "I'm not doing it for the world. I'm just doing it for myself." She shook her head.

"My intentions are what breed the malevolence festering inside of me." She stated softly with upmost conviction.

"No amount of reason could ever convince me to forget the sin running deep in my veins." She sighed, looking away from all of it. "…If I had to destroy the world, I'd do it in a heartbeat to kill Artorius. That hasn't changed." She muttered.

"And it never will."

The silence returned to wreath itself around the two of them, the childish laughter down below seeming distant and foreign.

An illusion of happiness.

Leo let out a drawn-out sigh, leaning back on the wooden roof, settling himself comfortably with a full view of the aurora above.

"…So be it." Leo muttered quietly.

He met Velvet's gaze.

"I'm still here with you, Velvet. Regardless of it all." He muttered quietly. "The weight of the world isn't on your shoulders alone. I promise you that." He intoned, looking back up at the stars.

"Yeah…" Velvet trailed off, following the man's gaze up and admiring the splendid, otherworldly vista above.

A reminder that the man who sat next to her was staying here for her sake.

"…Thanks." She whispered.

Leo huffed, quietly. "Not a problem." He intoned in response.

The sinful therion and the otherworldly human stayed up there together, the laughter of the children below bringing soft smiles to their faces.

* * *

Click.

Leo blinked from his position slumped on a couch in the empty main lobby of the inn at the noise, tearing his eyes away from his notebook he had been going over. He turned around discretely and watched with amusement as Eleanor tried her best to be surreptitious as she entered the inn.

A wry grin formed on his face as she snuck over to the door leading to the bath chamber, kneeling down and putting an ear to the keyhole. To his knowledge, there were only two people in the whole town that she would be spying on.

"You know," He drawled abruptly, scaring the crap out of the woman, "you really aren't cut out to be a spy, Eleanor." He grinned wryly at the woman caught utterly red-handed, her face beet-red in embarrassment.

"L-Leo?!" She gasped, standing up abruptly in a vague attempt to excuse herself. "I… I wasn't-!"

"Hush." Leo waved off, getting up from his seat and sliding his notebook back into his jacket. "This is about Velvet and Phi, isn't it?"

"Y… yeah." Eleanor admitted. "Please, don't tell them-!"

Leo quickly interrupted her, instead kneeling down and putting his own ear to the keyhole, waving her over. "Well?" He prompted the woman.

Taken aback, Eleanor stammered, "Uh, well I…"

Leo sent her a deadpan. "Come on. I know you want to."

With a moment more of indecision, Eleanor nodded reluctantly. "Alright."

Together, the two put their ears close to the keyhole, listening in on the confessions of a selfish, horrible girl.

"No."

"It's… it's too late."

Leo's eyes were sad as he registered Velvet's shaky, emotional voice.

"I've made too many sacrifices… Too many to ever come back from." A long breath. "…No matter what Leo or anyone else might say… There is no hope for me. No redemption."

Eleanor met Leo's gaze sadly as they listened together. His fists clenched in frustration.

"But… but Velvet…" Laphicet struggled for the words.

She continued dejectedly, "Even worse… I haven't stopped. I'm willing to sacrifice others… to keep going forward."

The words tumbled out of her mouth, long held in check by her own selfish fears. "If we kill Innominat… what will happen to the therions who are part of him? Will they… return to normal?"

"Well…"

Velvet's voice was quiet. "It's likely that they'll all die. I know." A sigh. "So does Leo."

Eleanor glanced at the man kneeling next to her in shock. He shook his head wordlessly and kept listening.

"I dug my own grave." Velvet's voice freely admitted. "But… what about Kamoana and Medissa? All the others? More importantly… what about you, Phi?"

An intake of breath.

"You are connected to him too…" She breathed. "I know… I might go through with this. But still, I have to do it." She ground out. "Even if it means I have to sacrifice everyone that I know… Even you who saved me."

"The Lord of Calamity isn't a demon lord…" She whispered. "She's just a… selfish… horrible girl…"

Silence.

In the lobby, despite himself, Leo let out a smile. She'd done it. Eleanor gave him an incredulous look.

"Just wait." He mouthed, holding up a finger.

Right on cue, Laphicet's voice reached their ears. "I have something to confess. I…"

He took a breath. "I don't like being called Phi. I really don't!"

Leo grinned happily, leaning back against the door frame. He let out a soft chuckle. "Attaboy, Laphicet." He grinned quietly. "I knew you would do it." He whispered.

Eleanor's eyes were wide as she listened to the boy brush off the therion's confession.

"I think that name's too childish." He admitted.

"…Laphi said the same thing to me." Velvet breathed, shock clear in her voice.

A chuckled. "I'm sure that he did! Velvet, you really don't understand boys at all."

"Yeah. You're right, I'm sorry."

Steps on stone signaled Laphicet's steps on the floor. "It's okay." He let out simply.

"I forgive you." He assured.

A shaky sob.

"…Thank you… Laphicet…"

Leo exhaled, standing up with a soft smile on his face. "I knew you could do it, kid." He muttered quietly.

"You're the only one who could ever truly forgive her for her sins." He whispered.

"Leo…" Eleanor muttered as she stood up, her eyes rife with emotion.

The man shook his head briefly. "Not here. Outside." He beckoned, heading out through the inn door and into the cold stone terrace. He sighed, relishing the cold on his face, leaning on the frozen snow-covered railing with a smile.

"You've known about this for a while." Eleanor accused as she joined him on the terrace.

Leo nodded quietly. "I'm sorry, Eleanor. It wasn't my secret to reveal." He breathed, looking away and waiting for her reaction.

He expected various reactions from the praetor. Anger at having been kept in the dark. Fury that he would endanger Laphicet's life by not letting him know beforehand. Betrayal for keeping secrets inside the group. But to his surprise, none of those emotions appeared.

"That's good." Eleanor nodded quietly into the cold. "I'm proud of you, Leo."

He blinked. "What? You're not… angry?"

The woman gave him an incredulous look. "Of course not!" She shook her head. "No… If there's one thing I've discovered about Velvet, the Lord of Calamity… Is that there is only one other person in this world she could possibly hope to trust." She met Leo's eyes. "And that's you, Leo."

"You're kidding." Leo muttered. "What makes you so sure?"

She sighed, twining her gloved hands together on top of the railing. "Nobody else here truly knows everything about Velvet. Honestly. We barely even know which town she had come from until we were forced to search for a therion there."

Eleanor met his gaze. "…But you did. You've known both Velvets, both before she became the Lord of Calamity and after. And yet… you still choose to walk with her. For no other reason except for friendship, even though you know her full story."

She shook her head. "I don't think you understand just how much impact you have just by being there for someone like her."

"…Yeah… I hope so." Leo breathed.

He shifted on his feet. "I do hope, with all my heart, that I can help my friend." He glanced up at the fading aurora in the sky. "…I'm sure you've noticed by now just how much she's trying to shoulder. It's painful to watch, but there's nothing else I can really do but remind her that I'm at her side."

He sighed. "A part of me still feels... useless, you know?" He muttered. "Just like how I felt right after Teresa and Oscar…" He trailed off.

Eleanor turned to him abruptly, putting her hands on his shoulders. "Don't." She insisted. "Just do what you need to do, Leonex Davidson." She gave him an encouraging nod.

"Humans are a mix of reason and emotion, right?" She reminded him. "Then find the way forward in your own heart. Just like I have." She patted her chest firmly. "I know you can do it, Leo. I trust you."

The man smiled softly in response.

"…Thanks, teacher." He grinned. "I will."

Eleanor nodded in satisfaction, turning back to the railing with a sigh. "If she's found it in herself to open her secret fears up to you and… I believe there might be a way out for her after all." She whispered in thought. "Her… and Laphicet… and Kamoana…"

"At least… I hope so." She whispered quietly.

Leo was silent, staring pensively into the quiet void.

"…We'll see." He breathed.

With a start, the man realized that the aurora had faded. Slowly, he lifted his hand out into to the moonlight in front of him. He watched as his fingers turned a deep shade of blood red. The Scarlet Night was upon them.

His gaze rose to the bloody volcano looming ominously above the town. The final stage of his experiment had begun.

It was time to wake some gods.


	53. C51 - Awakening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry, all! Forgot to update Ao3 until just now. Here it is!

**Chapter 51 – Awakening.**

The night was eerily quiet as the group shuffled through the empty Gaiburk Ice Fields painted in a bloody scarlet red hue. No features distinguished themselves from their surroundings save for the looming form of Mount Killaraus before them. There wasn't even a single gust of wind to be felt.

It was utterly haunting.

A shiver ran up Leo's spine that had nothing to do with the cold. He glanced around, reassuring himself mentally as he took in the darkened forms of his friends walking alongside him, headlong towards their destiny.

He was glad he had company in such a quiet, terrifying night.

High up in the sky, a hawk cried, piercing the silence.

"If only… if only I could use my power to seal Innominat…!" Laphicet mumbled quietly as he walked. His voice was a welcome respite to the blanket of silence that had enveloped the group up until this point.

Leo fell into step with the malak, a thoughtful look on his face as he considered those words. "Your power… to seal away Innominat." Leo mumbled thoughtfully.

He furrowed his brow. "Now how would that work, Phi?" He asked seriously.

"Remember what Aifread told me?" Laphicet asked. "He said that my power comes from being part of Innominat." He nodded his head determinedly. "And since my power is fundamentally a part of him, that means that there's a possibility that I might be able to counteract his powers and nullify him, sealing him away!"

"A cancelling out of Innominat's powers…" Leo muttered with wide eyes. "…Huh…"

He looked at the kid walking alongside him in a new light, a calculating look in his eyes.

"But…" He objected quietly, "Could a part really cancel out the whole?"

"I wouldn't dismiss the possibility outright."

Eizen interjected into the conversation as he fell into step with the two of them. "We have no true indication of the level of Laphicet's abilities in relation to Innominat. All we are aware of is his potential to turn daemons back into humans."

Leo nodded pensively. "That's right… Innominat doesn't have that power." He put a finger to his chin in thought. "…How curious." He murmured.

Laphicet shook his head determinedly. "If there's a chance, I'll take it, no matter how slim it might be!" He declared stoutly. "I man my own ship, after all!"

Eizen chuckled. "Aye. You do."

Leo furrowed his brow in thought. "Wouldn't… that mean Laphicet is… part of a god?" He muttered quietly to himself.

Rokurou's cheery voice piped up as he fell into step with them. "Looks like you're raring to go, eh, Laphicet?" He observed lightly. "Just… don't be too eager to help, alright?" He advised good-naturedly. "You've got a bad habit of trying to play the good guy."

"…Oh no. I'm not a good guy." Laphicet stuck his chin up into the air. "I'm a selfish, wicked little boy!" He declared heatedly.

A grin sprang onto Leo's lips. Some god.

"Oho," chuckled Rokurou, "is that so?"

As the conversation continued between the group, Leo distanced himself from the others, deep in thought. Abruptly, he found himself walking next to Velvet in the blood-red snow. He shot her a grin.

"Told ya so." He put smartly.

Velvet blinked before narrowing her eyes, understanding dawning instantly on her expression.

"…What did I say about the eavesdropping?" She growled sourly.

"Hey!" Leo defended himself indignantly, "It's what friends do, don't they?"

The therion groaned. "You and I need to have a talk about your idea of friendship." She muttered. She shook her head, getting back to the point. "…But yes." She admitted softly. "You were right." She nodded her head, glancing back at the malak Laphicet as he chatted amicably with the others.

"It did help." She muttered quietly. "Sharing."

Leo nodded sagely. "I'm proud of you, Velvet." He assured her.

She huffed softly in response.

Eleanor trotted up to the two of them, quietly sliding herself into the conversation. "Velvet…" she whispered. "Don't give up on Laphicet… just yet, okay?" She asked.

Velvet's eyebrow raised. "You too?" She asked dryly. "Was there anybody who  _wasn't_  eavesdropping on us?"

"A-all right, I was as well!" Eleanor admitted heatedly. "But that's not what I'm trying to say here!" She shook her head, leaning forward in conviction. "What I'm trying to say is-!"

"What she's trying to say is," Leo interrupted, "don't give up on the people standing next to you." He gave the woman small, warm smile. "…We're here for you. Don't forget that."

"…I know." Velvet looked away from the two of them. "More than anything… I don't want to give up. Not on myself, at least."

"…Good." Eleanor put simply. "Then don't." She ordered.

Leo let out a small laugh, hefting the rifle strapped on his shoulder. "…You know," he began, looking between the two women, "I never thought this would be what would end up happen that moment I threw my sword between you two back in the Brigid Ravine." He observed wryly.

His eyes turned distant. "It's been… quite the journey."

Eleanor nodded appreciatively. "That it has."

"Yes." Velvet nodded, a strange expression on her face. "And it's almost over."

Leo's eyes met hers quietly. He recognized the hidden meaning in those eyes. "…But not yet." he reminded her quietly.

"…Not yet." He breathed again, the words meant as a reminder only for himself.

Together, the group trudged onward, through the silent night.

* * *

The blistering, scorching heat of the volcano was everywhere. It was in Leo's eyes, it was in Leo's shoes, it was in Leo's shirt; it was in Leo's very damn being.

"UGH." He moaned as he stumbled along, wiping the sweat off his forehead. "I hate everything." He moaned.

"That's the tenth time you've said that." Velvet pointed out dryly by his side, as always, irritatingly unaffected by their surrounding environment.

"That doesn't make it any less true!" He groaned loudly, wiping the sweat out of his stinging eyes for the umpteenth time.

Magilou moaned in sympathetic agony. "I think I know why the old coot decided to hide up at the peak of the mountain." She took a choking breath of hot air. "It's 'cuz he knows we'll _die_ from the heat long before we get there!"

Rokurou rolled his eyes. "Why don't you cast a spell or something to cool you down or something?" He offered unhelpfully.

"For the last time, that's not how it works!"

Velvet sighed. "Come on." She urged. "The faster we manage to make it through the heat and get me some Melchior to eat, the less you'll have to suffer."

"Unless of course we all die in a blazing explosion of magma and perish in one of the most painful deaths known to human existence." Magilou pointed out sourly.

Velvet shrugged uncaringly. "Well, at least then your sufferings will be at an end. You can't complain about that, I'm sure."

Leo gave her a sour look. "Velvet, I think you're taking this whole 'Lord of Calamity' thing a bit too seriously."

She shrugged again. "Sue me." She suggested.

The group toiled onwards, crunching their way through the carved tunnels of magma as the very earth surrounding them rumbled angrily and ominously. It was almost as if the volcano itself knew the lord of daemons were in its depths.

Eleanor let out a breath as she made her way to an opening in the cavern walls, looking down into the smoldering cauldron a few stories down. "Well," she huffed, wiping the sweat off her forehead, "I think we're almost there at the very least." She observed.

"Oh good." Leo muttered sardonically as he trotted robotically forward. "So, we can go all this way just to get murdered by the most powerful legate in the Abbey. Awesome."

Eizen shook his head. "Come on." He urged. "If a little heat gets you down this much, how can you even expect to lift a finger against a god himself?"

"You're just the cheeriest person in the world, you know that Eizen?" Leo groaned.

"Enough." Velvet rolled her eyes, giving Leo a cuff on the back of the head. "The cold and the heat don't matter. Let's just get a move on."

Magilou pouted silently. "Says the daemon who can't feel neither cold nor heat…" She muttered sourly. "Piece of cake, it's a cinch, piece of cinch…"

As the group continued to push their way heedlessly into the heat, Velvet slowed her pace to meet Leo's at the back of the group.

"About your hypothesis." She prompted quietly.

Leo nodded, wiping the sweat off the back of his neck. "Yeah." He agreed in undertone. "It'll be confirmed or denied the moment you feed the souls of the legates to the Empyreans."

Velvet asked, "But what are you measuring, exactly?"

In response, Leo simply pointed to his head. "My device has built-in sensors to detect the presence of a certain anomaly in its current location in the world." He shook his head. "Long story short, it's a hypothesis that hinges on what happens when the Empyreans awaken and when Innominat is driven out. I'll know the second it happens whether I was right or wrong."

"Alright." Velvet nodded, at this point unfazed by whatever info Leo was feeding her. She trusted him. "As long as it won't hinder your ability to fight."

Leo shook his head wryly. "Shigure was enough of a pain the ass as it is. I'll try my best, but no promises." He grinned wryly.

"Heh." Velvet waved an uncaring hand. "Like I've always said, do as you like."

"And like I've always responded, I will."

The two shared a smile as they walked forwards into the depths of hell.

"Still, does it have to be  _this fucking hot_?!" Leo moaned. "God, I hate everything."

Velvet sighed. "And there's the eleventh…"

* * *

A blood red moon greeted the group as they stepped out into the shockingly cold peak of Mount Killaraus. All around them, the wind howled in rough gales, rustling their clothing and whipping their hair around. The land down below stretched for kilometers on end, all bathed a deep blood red by the celestial body hanging in the dark sky.

At the edge of the cliff looming above the boiling cauldron far, far below stood the Shepherd's Shadow, Legate Melchior Mayvin. With a formal hand held habitually behind him, the man gazed out over the blood-soaked land, his back to the group.

"The four elemental Empyreans are the beings that maintain the balance and harmony between earth, water, wind, and fire." He declared to the wind.

Slowly, he shifted his head, his single eye piercing the group members one by one with disdainful judgement. "Have you even stopped to think about why they sleep? About what waking them will do to this world's order?" He ground out angrily.

"Not really." Velvet shrugged, crossing her arms. "I don't much care." She admitted shamelessly.

The man turned fully to them. "They sleep… because of arrogant, insolent wretches like you." He glared hatefully at the woman. "The Empyreans derive their power, and that of their blessings, from the prayers of the pure at heart." He announced.

"But… humans became corrupted and neglected their prayers." The bearded legate shook his head in disappointment. "The forgotten Empyreans drifted into slumber."

Leo's eyes widened. "So… Innominat…?"

The legate's eye fell on the man, a strange look in his eye. "…As the fifth Empyrean, Innominat's purpose is to eat human souls, malevolence and all, and to wipe the slate clean." His gaze was piercing. "When all mankind is once again pure as a newborn babe… the elemental Empyreans can be safely revived."

"W-wipe the slate?!" Eleanor gasped. "But that means-!"

"Yes." The man nodded slowly, stoutly. "…Civilization will crumble." He declared.

The entire group shifted in shock.

"The spread of malevolence… the cleansing of Innominat… this cycle has repeated countless times over the eons. That is why human civilizations rises and falls." He explained with crossed arms. "But if this continues… humanity will never surpass a certain threshold."

Far, far below him, the rumbling of the simmering volcano continued.

His back straightened. "Thus, the Abbey will control Innominat's power, so that we may guide humanity into a new, better era!" He declared, assured of his righteousness.

Leo shook his head.

"…So that's it." He muttered. He made eye contact with the legate. "I've been spinning my gears for the past few weeks, trying my damndest to wrap my head around how the hell the Empyreans work in relation to each other." Leo shrugged. "Thanks for the info, I guess."

Laphicet looked at him in surprise. "Is that what you've been doing, Leo?"

"Hm." Eizen hummed. "Not a bad idea. Knowing one's enemy is a surefire path to success."

"…Indeed. I too, am of the same mindset." Melchior's expression was rigid as he stared at Leo.

His eyes narrowed. "Which is why I found it most peculiar when I discovered that one of my enemies had failed to appear in the memory of the Earthen Historia."

Leo froze.

By his side, Velvet shot him a worried look.

Eizen's eyes narrowed.

"It was undoubtedly curious." Melchior continued, quietly gauging the reactions of the rest of the group as he ran his fingers through his beard. "Imagine my surprise when I came to the one and only possible conclusion. The realization that one of the Lord of Calamity's companions…"

"…was not of this world."

The howling of the wind pierced the shocked silence on the peak.

"Tell me," The legate continued, "How long have you been intruding in on our world, foreigner?" He spat.

Eleanor's eyes were wide. "…What?" She whipped her head to Leo in surprise. "What is he talking…?" She trailed off uncertainly.

"Leo?" Laphicet asked worriedly, turning to the distressed man.

Leo's fists clenched as he stared hatefully back at the aged legate, ignoring the shocked stares of the group on his back.

"That… wasn't your secret to tell." He grounded out lowly through his teeth.

The legate shifted slowly. "And this isn't your world to influence." He gazed around, taking in the shocked looks of the Lord of Calamity's group. "…It is as I expected." He observed detachedly.

His disdain was palatable. "A cowardly man such as yourself, who would run from your own world, would indeed keep such secrets to himself." He scoffed hatefully. "Who are you to meddle in the affairs of our universe? What right do you have to stand besides those whom you call your friends, and yet have not had the courage to even divulge your own nature to?"

Leo's jaw was firm, glaring hatefully at the man. He was silent.

The legate roared, pointing forward. "THERE IS AN ABOMINATION IN YOUR MIDST!" He declared. "Do you not see?!" He yelled at the group.

The silence was pierced by only the howling of the wind and the rumbling of the volcano following the legate's declaration.

"…Is this true, Leo?" Rokurou asked seriously.

Quietly, slowly, Leo nodded.

"…Yeah." He huffed softly. "I guess the cat's out of the bag." He shook his head softly. "…I'm sorry for keeping it a secret."

"The guy's right. I'm a coward." He muttered quietly. "That's just who I am."

Laphicet's eyes were soft. "Leo… That's not…" He murmured.

Leo shook his head, turning to the others. "No really, he's right. I don't belong here, and I never will." He sighed, reluctantly making eye contact with the people he had no right to call his friends. "…I don't deserve to be with you all."

Melchior nodded sagely. "Good. So, you understand the baselessness of your existence." His eyes were hard. "Just as how daemons are a scourge upon mankind, you are an  _abomination_  upon our world."

The legate gritted his teeth forcefully. "Leave now, foreigner." He demanded. "Meddle not in what you have no place in."

Leo's fists clenched harder in the silence. The man was pressing all the right buttons. Each harsh declaration split directly into his core. Regardless of his antagonistic disposition against him, the legate was right.

He was a coward. He ran away from everything. He had no right to be here, amongst these other people whom he selfishly called his friends while withholding his own nature from them. In the end, all of this would simply become another fading memory in an endless string of foreign thoughts. He didn't deserve to be here.

Leonex Davidson didn't deserve to exist. Not in Desolation.

"…Hah."

Everyone blinked and turned to Magilou as she abruptly stepped forward, next to the stranger. "It was a nice try, old man."

She grinned wryly.

"But the only thing you've accomplished is winning my bet for me!" She declared, whipping out her guardians with a flourish. "Now I  _have_ to keep the 'abomination' around, so he can fess up and pay me the 300 gald he owes me!"

Leo blinked.

"Yeah." Everyone watched as Eizen stepped up next to the witch in the moonlight, his hands solidly on his belt.

"And you should know, Aifread's Pirates takes on anyone with the guts and grit to take on the untamed open seas, regardless of their origins." He grinned savagely. "I came to your same conclusion weeks ago." He revealed casually. "But I'd be damned if I, of all people, were to judge another man by the path he decided to take."

His bracelet shone in the blood red sky as he slipped it on his left wrist.

A smile slowly began to form on Leo's face. "…Guys…" He murmured softly.

"Yeah!" Laphicet yelled, running up to the rest next to Leo. "I think it's really cool! Daemon, Therion, Reaper, Malak, Exorcist, Witch, and an Abomination!" He grinned happily up at the man. "He fits in just right with the rest of us! We don't care what you are, as long as you're alive!"

With a determined expression carved into his features, the malak whipped out his casting papers.

"My question is," Rokurou began as he stepped up as well to face the legate, "who the hell gives a crap?!" He grinned, pulling out his dual blades and whirling them around. "Did you think we'd care? It's not like our group consists of the best and the most virtuous of people. Hell, the label of 'abomination' could suit every single person here!"

"Excuse you!" Eleanor huffed angrily as she stepped up, her spear twinkling in the moonlight. "Just who the hell do you think I am?!"

"Er, sorry." Rokurou grinned sheepishly. "I meant most."

Rolling her eyes, Eleanor gave her former student a reassuring nod. "Leo, I've known you for a long time. You're not a coward. You've done so much for all of us." She shook her head fondly. "Whether it's through your stupid jokes, or your constant groaning, or your infallible determination to do what you think is right…"

Her eyes were soft and genuine. "You belong here. Trust me." Her eyes narrowed as she snapped her spear to attention. "Right here, alongside the rest of us against the Lord Artorius's twisted reason!" She yelled into the night.

Velvet was quiet as she stepped up to Leo, her chains clinking in the wind.

"If you think this is a way to break the Lord of Calamity…" She scoffed derisively at the legate. "I'm afraid the 'coward' has already told me all of this himself."

She made fond eye contact with the man. "And I for one couldn't care less where he came from, or what he is." She declared easily with a hand on her hip. "That's all."

All of them… his friends standing up with him. Together, regardless of his nature. Of his cowardice. Of his fears. Of his past.

It was… amazing.

Leo's face split into an honest smile.

So many years he'd spent, wandering endlessly from world to world, being slowly worn away like a rock under a fierce, unceasing tide. A clock, ticking endlessly forward as its gears grinded away to dust.

And now…

Softly, he made his feelings known to his friends standing alongside him. "…I… never thought I'd feel this way ever again." He muttered quietly, raising his gaze to meet the legate. His hand reached slowly behind his shoulder.

"The only thing that ever kept me going endlessly onward between worlds…" He clenched his rifle barrel. "…Was the tiny, infinitesimal hope of feeling even a scrap of this."

His eyes softened. "A feeling of home. Of belonging." He whispered in awe.

Melchior's eyes were furious. "Yet you do not belong here!" He roared into the night. "Your very existence is reviled by the earth you walk! Nature rejects your presence in our world in the most profound way! Have you no shame for your sins?!"

Leo pulled his rifle around his shoulder and clicked the safety off. "That's where you're wrong, Melchior." He retorted. "I have plenty of shame for my sins."

He glanced to his left, and to his right. To the people standing beside him. He glanced over to the therion Velvet Crowe, and Phi, part of Innominat's whole. The people he needed to help. The people he would never again run from.

"This?" He slowly raised his rifle. The barrel glinted in the moonlight.

"This is my atonement." He stated firmly.

Melchior physically shook with rage, clenching his fists in wordless anger.

"Why you… insect!" He burst out. "You're a parasite, leeching off that which is not yours!" He roared. "How dare you arrogantly assume to have any say in the workings of our world?!"

Magilou grinned, playing with a guardian in her hand. "Pot calling the kettle black, wouldn't you say, master?"

Velvet's eyes were cold as she stepped forward in front of Leo. "End of the line, Melchior." Her calcite blade flew out with a metallic screech that echoed throughout the land. Her eyes narrowed. "The Lord of Calamity and friends won't be torn apart so easily."

Her grin was feral. "You're mine to devour."

As one, the group took a step forward, towards the man standing at the edge of the cliff.

"Hmph…"

The man muttered, shaking his head lightly. "I should have known it wouldn't be that simple."

"Fine. So be it." He raised his gaze up to the bloody sky. "Then as one is ought to do with a nest of pests, I shall crush you all, here and now." He declared. "With the full weight of my being."

"For just as light cannot exist without darkness, no great achievement comes without sacrifice." He shut his eyes calmly, pensively. "Even I must be made tribute for the sake…"

His eyes snapped open, glowing shockingly bright in the dark. "…OF OUR IDEAL WORLD!" He roared.

With a blinding flash, the legate's body was enveloped in holy sacrificial light.

"Armatus!" Laphicet yelled in alarm.

Leo cursed. "Get the hell back, everyone!" He roared, backpedaling quickly from the blistering heat of the arte.

"I told you, he's a crafty old buzzard!" Magilou yelped as she fired a barrage of fireballs towards the casting man.

CRASH!

Everyone winced as the fireballs collided with the legate, only to be instantly repelled by floating elemental balls surrounding the man as his Armatus completed. His body, marred with pure azure mana interrupting his pristine legate outfit, straightened into a practiced, disciplined stance. The man's now stark-white eyes opened.

"Now." He declared. "The hour of judgement is nigh."

Two fingers rose from his clenched fist.

"I SHALL CRUSH YOU!" He roared. The group tensed as untold amounts of mana began to build behind the man as the elemental spheres began to cycle behind him, humming with raw power.

"Damn!" Leo cursed.

Eleanor ordered sharply, "Regroup!"

"Got it!" Rokurou assented, leaping over.

Eizen placed his body in front of the others. "Stay sharp!" He ordered, bracing his body.

As one, the group bundled together against the coming storm, their weapons raised in defense. Melchior's arte completed with a massive thrum of power. The floating spheres behind him abruptly stilled their orbits simultaneously and glowed ominously.

"ABSOLUTE PRISON!" He roared, raising his arms and sending a ball of pure untamed power towards the group.

Velvet's yell was urgent. "PHI!"

"On it!" The malak responded, raising his arms. The sphere of power collided with the malak's shield.

CRASH!

A massive glacier formed in an instant, enveloping half the summit of Mount Killaraus with pure mana-infused ice. The tremble of power from its formation sent a shiver through the very foundation of the land and was felt for miles around. Its shockingly frosted blue shine clashed dramatically with the blood red hue of the moon. A prison for the worst of criminals.

The silence returned to the mountain.

Melchior stared guardedly at his handiwork, his arms falling to his sides, limp with exhaustion. Behind him, the conjured mana spheres of his Armatus spun softly.

His eyes narrowed.

BOOM!

The glacier suddenly shattered violently, vicious shards of ice hurtling in every direction and raining down upon the bloody land below the mountain. Melchior grunted, bringing his arms up to cast a shield to guard against the onslaught.

From the heart of the shattered prison, the villains emerged.

"HOMING RAIN!"

CRACK! CRACK! CRACK!

The legate grunted, instantly teleporting away as vicious-looking projectiles flew towards him with supersonic speeds, only to turn around a few miles out from the peak to home in on his new location like hunting birds of prey.

"GO!" Leo roared, cocking his rifle and moving to the side, allowing the others to exit the prison while Melchior was forced to deal with the lethal missiles. At his side, Hawk strained in effort as he maintained the arte.

Three successive explosions marked Melchior's success as he intercepted the homing explosive bullets with a thick conjured shield of ice.

"You're mine!" Velvet roared as she charged in through the remains of the ice, daemon claw held up high in preparation for its next meal.

With a flash, the legate disappeared before the claw made contact, reappearing behind the woman by the edge of the peak. A ball of mana appeared in his hands, ready to be sent in retaliation.

The legate was forced to disappear once more as dual blades swiped through the air he was occupying. "No, you don't!" Rokurou refuted as he twirled his blades in his unique Rangetsu style, leaping to the side as the legate fired ice shards from his new position next to the remains of the glacial prison.

"Hah!" Magilou cried as she completed her arte, eliciting boiling flames to erupt from the ground at Melchior's feet, boiling the snow and sending steam billowing in all directions.

When the legate reappeared at Magilou's back, Leo was ready.

"AGH!" Melchior released a groan of agony before disappearing and reappearing in the distance once more, clutching the wound on his back inflicted by Leo's gauntlet blade. Velvet and Rokurou gave the legate no time to recover as they harried him with their swords, forcing him to guard and teleport with no offensive opportunity.

"Heheh!" The witch gave a near hysterical laugh as she elicited a shard of stone to pierce the legate in the distance. "Victory feels oh, so sweet!" She declared as Melchior dodged her arte in the distance.

Eleanor gave her a look as she completed her arte, healing Rokurou's wounds from a distance. "We've hardly won." She pointed out. "Melchior's Armatus is no laughing matter; he's sure to have more up his sleeve."

Leo rolled his eyes as he reloaded his rifle. "She means our bet." He explained, raising his weapon to his shoulder. "She bet 300 gald on whether I'd reveal my secrets within a year back in Reneed."

Magilou chuckled arrogantly. "Losing was never an option, my dear abomination." She grinned wryly. "Although I don't think I expected this result in particular." She shook her head in disbelief. "My, my, an otherworldly traveler, eh? Hah! I've seen it all!" With a grunt, she leapt to the side as shards of ice flew her way.

Laphicet let out a laugh as he ran up in front of Magilou, guarding her from the onslaught of ice. "Haha, yeah!" He grunted as he retaliated, sending piercing arrows of light hurtling towards the teleporting legate. "It's actually really, really cool, Leo!"

CRACK!

Leo gave him a look over his shoulder as smoke drifted from his rifle barrel. "You know," He noted wryly, "I thought there'd be a whole lot more disbelief about this whole I'm-from-a-different-world-entirely thing." He abruptly lunged forward, ducking under Velvet's swing and slicing at Melchior with his gauntlet blade.

Rokurou threw him a grin as he leapt upward, two swords whistling through the air as he descended. "Nah!" He dismissed as he landed, rolling to the side as a slab of pure ice crushed the snow he was occupying. "It's strange, but I think we're used to it by now!"

Velvet rolled her eyes as she whirled behind her, claw extended and drawing blood from the teleporting legate who yelled in agony before disappearing once more. "We're fighting gods, Leo." She pointed out as the legate's blood dripped onto the snow below. "It wasn't that much of a reach when you first told me."

Eleanor yelled as she leapt forward, spear nearly missing Melchior as he dodged inhumanly quickly. "That's right!" She shouted as she ducked under a thrusting sphere of mana. "Velvet, you knew about this?"

Eizen made himself known as he abruptly materialized in the air behind the legate, smashing down his fist in a furious explosion of mana. "If I'm not mistaken," he began, leaping backwards and guarding against a smashing flurry of ice, "Velvet's known ever since the Earthen Historia was shown to us back in the earthpulse."

Leo gave him a look. "Nothing ever goes over your head, does it Eizen?" He shook his head, cocking his rifle and slipping his finger inside the trigger guard.

CRACK-CAK!

"Yeah, I admit it!" He yelled to the rest of the group as he cocked his rifle from the missed shot. "I only told Velvet. I'm really, really sorry for keeping it a secret from you all!" He apologized heatedly.

"But why?" Eleanor asked genuinely in a shout, leaping back in a dodge as ice rained down from the sky. "Why keep it a secret from us?"

Velvet leapt up inhumanly high in the sky to avoid a barrage of ice before coming down with a yell and an extended daemon arm. "This idiot," she began in his defense, slamming down onto the empty snow as the legate teleported away once more, "has problems with facing reality head on." She shot him a wry grin. "He just likes running away, you know."

"Hey! I resent that, you know!" Leo shouted back as he slashed his sword at a reappearing Melchior. "I'll have you know, that I've changed, alright?! That's why I'm still here!"

Eleanor shook her head in exasperation as she ran up alongside the man and added her longer spear to his onslaught, driving the man further towards the edge of the peak. "I believe it!" She agreed, charging forward with a yell. "It explains all these years of his weirdness quite well, actually." She noted as she slid in the snow, turning around as the legate teleported once more. "To think you've been from another world all this time…!" She shook her head in disbelief.

Laphicet grinned happily, raising his papers as the world darkened around them, his eyes shining with power. "It's fine, Leo! We don't care how weird you are, or where you come from!"

SMASH!

The legate was powerless to stop the instant bolt of lightning that landed, shattering his shields and eliciting a rough cry of pain as he shuddered in agony from the power coursing through his veins. Laphicet gasped for breath as the arte ended. "B… Because that's just our creed!" He gave the man a supportive grin.

Eizen nodded roughly, smashing his fist into the legate and sending him flying. "Well said." He appraised, shooting Leo a grin. "Besides, if you're here, you're a castaway from a different world, making you a sailor lost in sea." He shrugged lightly. "Any sailor worth his salt knows the importance of helping those adrift."

Magilou shot the reaper a look, twirling her guardians around. "That's some logic." She noted dryly, casting another arte to the fight that had shifted down the peak. "Well! All I care about is my money, of course." She grinned predatorially at Leo. "Now pay up!"

Leo gave her a double-take. "What? Now?" He asked dumbfounded as another explosion rocked the mountain once more.

"Of course! Don't think I'm going to let you skimp out on this bet!" The witch spouted adamantly, holding out her hand expectantly.

"I don't think this is the best time!" Eleanor yelled as she ran in, her spear held sideways in a guard as Melchior abruptly appeared in their midst, abandoning the melee fighters down the peak in favor of attacking the ranged fighters.

"DEVOUR!"

Velvet charged in with a roar, slashing her claw at the attacking legate and causing him to abandon his assault. She shot the rest of them a killer glare. "Magilou, you're going to get us all killed!"

"How rude!" The witch huffed, swinging her elongated guardian at the too-close-for-comfort Melchior. "What kills is a lack of focus on the importance of financial security! One must always take monetary matters seriously, regardless of the times! And I won that bet, fair and square!"

"Hey, Magilou?" Laphicet abruptly spoke up, casting a shield to protect both Leo and him from an incoming arte. "Didn't you originally bet that  _you'd_ be the one to get Leo's secrets out of him? Does Melchior count?"

… _Oh. That's right._

Leo's eye twitched.

"HAH!" He abruptly whooped, smacking the boy on the back in joy. "SUCK IT, MAGILOU! YOU LOST!" He roared happily.

"Wh-WHAT!? No! That's slander! LIES! I require written proof and no less than five pieces of concrete evidence providing the validity of your claims!" Magilou sputtered helplessly.

Leo stuck his tongue out at her vindictively. "Come on, Magilou! Pay up now!" He grinned savagely. "One must always take monetary matters seriously, regardless of the times, right?"

"N-no!" The witch sputtered wordlessly in response. "This can't be happening!" She cried as she leapt to the side as a lethal meteor of ice crashed down to earth, sending snow flying everywhere. "I can't have lost  _another_ bet! I'm better than this!"

As the witch wailed helplessly, Eleanor rolled her eyes. "It seems to me that all you've done is make poor decisions." She pointed out as she stabbed forward with her spear. "Perhaps you should rethink your life choices, and become a better person with some helpful introspection?" She suggested primly.

Magilou shot her a baleful glare. "Never!" She yelled petulantly, smashing out a series of explosions to hound the legate into the other close-range fighters. "For I am the evil witch Magilou! No do-good exorcist will ever convince me to turn my leaf! My rotten, unsalvageable, leaf!" She cried into the night.

"A leaf that owes me 300 gald." Leo observed, raising an eyebrow pointedly at the woman behind his shoulder.

"Be quiet! You technically don't exist in this world, so I hereby declare any bets made with you null and void!" Magilou spouted heatedly, flicking her arm and rattling out another nearby explosion.

Leo glared at her. "Bullshit! You can't do that!" His rifle raised at the distant legate.

CRACK-CAK!

"Hmm? What's that?" Magilou asked wryly. "I think I heard something. Must've been my imagination."

Leo growled wordlessly back in response.

Laphicet just chuckled. "I'd give it up, Leo. Magilou's never going to pay you." He observed.

The man sighed, reloading his rifle. "I guess you're right." He shot a glare at the witch. "Damn otherworlders." He spat sarcastically, lifting his weapon once more.

"Phi!" Velvet's cry rang out over the ravaged mountainside as she charged the legate once more, Rokurou and Eizen at her side. "Let's do it!"

"Yeah!" Laphicet cried back, sprinting forward towards the legate between him and the therion. "Let's do it, Velvet!" He yelled, gathering a flurry of papers in front of him and sending them forward to envelop the legate and forcing him in place.

"No mercy!" Velvet roared, charging forward and leaping in the air, stabbing her sword in a grazing blow as she leapt upwards.

"This fight is over!" She declared, landing in the middle of the air on one of Laphicet's floating papers and bouncing straight back, slicing a gash once more on Melchior's armatized body. A trail of pure red mana followed in her wake, drawing a crisscrossing path of destruction upwards into the frigid air as she juggled the legate in Laphicet's grasp higher and higher into the air.

"ULTIMATE ARTE!" She roared as an immense casting circle formed on the snow below and gathered mana directly into the center. Flaming red swords of hellfire materialized at the woman's side as she flew upward, directly above Melchior's falling body.

"SCATTER!" Laphicet yelled as he flicked his hand, his open palm pointing towards the mass of mana. A brilliant shine lit up the world as the arte completed.

"INNUMERABLE WOUNDS!"

They both cried at the same time as both of their artes collided together, Melchior sandwiched directly in the middle. A brilliant, villainous red cross of raging fire clashed with brilliant pillars of azure blue mana, crushing the legate between the forces of light and dark. The world shook all around as the artes detonated, Melchior's screams of agony barely heard over the rushing of power.

"Gahhh…" The man groaned, slumping to the ground, heaving as the spheres of mana dangled in the air behind him. "Were I…" he coughed roughly, spitting out blood onto the snow. "…only a hundred years younger…" He groaned.

The villains surrounding the legate blinked in surprise. "A… hundred?!" Laphicet exclaimed, himself gasping for breath after the intensive arte he'd unleashed.

Magilou's eyes were hard as she gazed upon the wretched form of her former master. "He's used an oath to add years to his life. Centuries, even."

Leo gave her a look. "Oaths are that powerful?!" He breathed in astonishment.

Velvet stood up from her position next to Laphicet, catching her breath. "Is that what you call rational?" She asked sardonically as she shifted on her feet. "Sounds like an obsession."

"Hmph." Melchior muttered, his eyes distant. "I've said the same thing thousands of times… If it were my choice, I'd have let myself die naturally long ago…" He shook his head angrily, struggling to his feet. "But did he not say…"

His elbow bent properly as he recited the familiar words. "'Man can turn reason into disorder, but also can we surpass it.'" He quoted. "'Our true power is in transcending the possible… to achieve the idea.'"

Magilou's eyes were unsurprised. "So were the words… of the exorcist Claudin." She muttered.

"They were foolish." Velvet's expression was unchanged. Unwavering the face of an utterly different ideology.

"…Think what you will." Melchior spat uncaringly, his body stiffening. "I'll show you the truth of his words!" He yelled, lifting his hand in another arte.

Leo blinked as a mirror image of himself appeared in front of him, alongside a mirror image of his friends, weapons out and ready to attack his doppelganger.

"You think illusions will work on us now?!" Velvet roared as she and the rest of the group charged their mirror selves, smashing them into oblivion. Leo followed their lead. A quick pull of the trigger returned the mirror Leo to oblivion.

Melchior's chuckle drew the groups attention as they whirled around, to see the legate standing there at the peak, his back to them. "…Not in the least." He looked wryly over his shoulder. "But it bought me enough time to finish my arte." He announced as the ball of mana gathering before him grew.

"Shit!" Leo swore, raising his rifle.

"Are you trying to set off the volcano?!" Magilou shouted.

Eizen's yell was urgent. "You'll die too!"

Melchior took a step back and turned to them uncaringly. "As long as I take the Lord of Calamity with me, I have no regrets. That's because…"

He turned to face them all, defiant in the face of oblivion.

"I FOLLOW REASON!" He roared, the explosive arte peaking behind him.

SNAP.

With a flick of her wrist, Magilou snapped her fingers and cast a tiny arte at the man. In an instant, a flower appeared at the man's feet as he backed towards his arte.

"Hoh!" Leo blinked in shock as the legate's eyes widened, instinctively forcing himself off-balance in order to avoid the illusionary flower.

Velvet didn't hesitate to capitalize on the distraction. "HAAAH!"

CRUNCH!

Eyes wide with rage and hair flapping in the breeze, the therion flew inhumanly forward like a bullet out of Leo's gun and thrust her sharp claw directly into the legate's stomach. Just like that, the arte dissipated harmlessly into the air as the two bodies flew off the cliff, a daemon devouring an exorcist in the light of the bloody full moon.

"GAHHH! HOW… HOW DARE YOU… INSULT CLAUDIN'S IDEALS SO!" Melchior screamed in pain as the gigantic claw began to pulse, devouring him in seconds as they flew in the air.

"Hey… master." Magilou murmured quietly as the rest of the group watched the legate's demise. "Emotions are a real pain, aren't they?"

With a squelch, the legate disappeared into the Lord of Calamity's claw, into the ball of souls forming in her palm. With a fierce roar, Velvet drew her claw back as she fell towards the boiling cauldron of the lifespring far down below, the light of the Scarlet Night framing her form.

Magilou yelled towards the falling form. "VELVET! DO IT, NOW!"

"MAKE US PROUD!" Leo roared his encouragement, mentally initiating the analytics mode of his device.

"…And here goes nothing." He muttered softly to himself as he watched the numbers closely.

"You're damn right I will!" Velvet's voice rang out as she flew, the raging fires of the mountain casting her figure in a murderous glow. "Hey! Empyreans!" She yelled as she tensed her body, her soul-wielding claw twisting behind her. "The Lord of Calamity is here!"

"WAKE THE HELL UP!"

CRASH!

The entire mountain shook in reaction to the burst of energy as Velvet shoved the souls in her claw down the throat of the earth spring alongside all the mana she could muster, digging directly through the molten magma and into the very core workings of the world itself.

Her job done, Velvet flipped around and quickly angled her fall towards the cliffs below, using her daemon claw to arrest her velocity by sliding down the rocks and into the caverns down below as the blue light in the pool of magma began to dissipate.

It was done.

The souls of Teresa, Oscar, Shigure, and Melchior had been offered. Now came the moment of truth. Up on the peak, the group stood at the edge, waiting in silent anticipation for any sort of sign that the Gods of their world had awoken.

The moment it happened, Leo found out about it first. He blinked, the numbers and real-time graphs falling drastically. They weren't what he'd expected.

"…Shit." He swore softly.

The radiation levels had returned to normal.

The group looked at him strangely, seeing him apparently staring off into nothing with wide eyes. "What, what? What are you looking at?" Magilou asked in befuddlement.

In a flash, Leo had his notebook and pencil out, flipping to the last page of notes of his recent experiments. Proof of his hypothesis…

Which had turned out to be false.

"No… It's all wrong." Leo muttered, writing the information on his device quickly as possible as the numbers dropped. "Damnit! What the hell does this all mean!?" He roared angrily into the air.

"What the hell are you talking about?!" Eleanor asked in alarm, stepping up to the man.

Leo abruptly remembered they were there, his eyes refocusing on the people looking at him anxiously. "Oh. Eleanor." He breathed with a wild look in his eyes. "I… was wrong." He admitted softly. "I had thought… I had thought I had the Empyreans all figured out, but…."

He snapped his notebook shut, sighing.

"…I'll talk about it later. I need to think more about this." He shook his head, turning from the group. "Come on. Let's go meet up with the Lord of Calamity." He muttered, trudging absent-mindedly down the snow and continuing to look off into the distance, seeing something that the others couldn't.

The group exchanged shrugs before following in his footsteps as the scarlet night ended above their heads, the sky slowly turning from red to dark blue.

They'd long ago accepted Leonex Davidson to be a strange, peculiar man.

Far in the distant horizon, a new dawn began to rise over a changed land.

**End of Part 8 – The Empyreans.**


	54. C52 - Universe

**Chapter 52 – Universe.**

The stars were bright in the sky as they twinkled next to the waning moon the night. A freezing gust of wind blew through the field of ice, eliciting shivers from the humans in the group as they huddled closer to the fire. Meanwhile the daemons and malakhim were relaxing farther away from the source of heat with their greater tolerance of the elements.

"Ahhh!" Rokurou let out a massive breath of relief as he leant back in the snow. "Nothing like a great meal after waking some gods!"

Magilou hummed. "Right. Nothing at all." She shrugged as she leaned back in her seat, savoring the feeling of a full, warm stomach. She glanced to her side wryly. "So, how about it, kiddo?" She called out into the night. "You sense where Innominat is?"

Laphicet opened his eyes and nodded, trotting over to the fire where the rest of the group was. "The awakened Empyreans have pushed his body out of the earthpulses." He reported, settling himself down on the snow next to them. "He's somewhere above the Empyrean's Throne now. Artorius is with him. He's pushing back against the other Empyreans with incredible force even right now."

Magilou fingered her chin in thought. "If the four are defeated, we'll lose our last chance. How bad is it?" She asked urgently.

Laphicet spent a few moments feeling the connection between him and Innominat. "…It's an even battle." He mumbled. "Innominat and the four Empyreans seem to be almost equal in power. I don't think we have to worry about Innominat winning anytime soon."

Velvet handed the malak a bowl with a smile. "Good job, Phi." She complemented. "It'll be time to end this soon enough." Her eyes were determined. "…Finally."

"Yeah!" Laphicet agreed, taking the bowl and smelling it slowly, relishing the aroma. "…Mmm… this smells great, Velvet! Thanks!" He grinned as he dug in hungrily, exhausted from his efforts.

Eleanor nodded by her side, properly placing her empty bowl next to others by the fire. "Indeed. It's impressive just how you've managed to improve your cooking over the past few months, especially considering your lack of taste."

Velvet shrugged. "I'll take your word for it, since I can't very well see for myself." A smile formed on her face. "But I appreciate it. You seem to have gotten pretty good at cooking too."

Eizen threw in his own two cents. "Aye. I'd say we've all had our fair share of changes over the course of our journey." He was pensive, tossing his coin in the air once more before catching it absent-mindedly. "And so has the land."

"Oh yeah." Rokurou scratched his head as he leaned back, his own empty bowl held loosely in his grip. "Melchior mentioned the same thing. But if you ask me, nothing seems all that different right now."

Eizen nodded. "It's all relative. Changes in the earth that once took eons will now happen in a few hundred years."

Eleanor blinked. "A few hundred years?"

Laphicet nodded, looking up from his soup. "A long while to a human, maybe, but compared to the history of the land, it'll be a blink of an eye."

Magilou piped up, "But Innominat is the Empyrean of Suppression." Her eyes were serious. "Who can say what will happen when we kill him?"

On the other side of the campfire, Leo looked up from his notes quietly.

 _I suppose it's time._ He thought.

SNAP.

With a flick of his wrist, he snapped his notebook shut, instantly drawing the attention of everyone in the campsite to him. He straightened in his seat, finally ready to address the group.

"Oh!" Magilou observed lightly. "Has the abomination finally found his voice again?"

Eleanor's eyes were worried. "You've been awfully quiet ever since last night, Leo. What's going on?" She asked.

Velvet's gaze was serious. "How're your theories faring, Leo?" She asked quietly.

Leo nodded. It was time to let them in on his research.

"Alright, everyone." He shifted, turning to address everyone gathered across the campfire. The flames played tricks with the shadows dancing across his face as he gathered the words. "I think it's time I came out completely clean."

The howling of the wind across the surrounding, darkened wastes punctuated his statement.

"I've been travelling worlds for a long time." He began, his eyes growing distant. "I was 22 when I first left my home world. I've been trying to get back ever since."

The rest of the group was silent, listening openly to the man as he finally came out and divulged his strange, otherworldly past.

"I use a certain substance to travel between worlds. I call it background radiation."

He tapped his head lightly. "I have a device in my head that collects this particular radiation, and once I have enough, I can jump to a new, random world. It's in this fashion that I hope to one day return back to my home work by pure chance."

Eizen's eyes were thoughtful. "…So," he observed, "you mean to say that this substance is present in every world, no matter what?"

Leo nodded firmly, flipping absently to the first page in his notebook. "…The Davidson Phenomenon." He muttered, showing the document to the others. "It's been a secret held in my family for generations, ever since my grandfather discovered it decades ago back on my home world."

He struggled to find a way to explain it in layman's terms. "…Think of it like a shroud that covers an entire world. A shroud that is equally thin or thick wherever you are in said world."

He extended his arms out, attempting to convey the vastness of the concept he was describing. "A stable, universal constant." He explained. "No matter where you go, it is always there, and always in the same amount."

Such thoughts inevitably brought up the old, painful memories in his mind.

_His father._

He shook his head, forcing himself back on track. "…We came up with a hypothesis along those lines." He recounted. "We conjectured that this particular radiation was present in  _all_ worlds, each with its own unique strength. Some worlds had lots of radiation, other worlds had little. But the one unifying factor would be that the level of radiation, regardless of what it was, was constant no matter where you went in that particular world."

He shifted in the snow.

"But that theory was blown to smithereens the moment Innominat sucked us into his earthpulse." He muttered.

Velvet blinked in surprise at that.

He flipped the pages in his notebook to the numbers that simply should not have been possible. "I received an immense dosage of radiation the moment I entered Innominat's domain; something that has not and should've occurred."

He glanced at Velvet, listening attentively across the campfire. "And that was where I developed a new hypothesis." He shook his head.

"I conjectured that this  _particular radiation_  that I use…"

Leo searched for the words.

"…is a… I guess you could say, a  _byproduct_  of an Empyrean's existence."

The group shifted at this potential revelation.

"A… byproduct?" Laphicet murmured. "Like… the Empyreans are what cause the radiation to appear in other worlds?"

Velvet's expression was profoundly thoughtful. "…"

Leo nodded. "This whole time, ever since Innominat's Ceremony of Suppression has happened, we've been in Innominat's domain, and I've been receiving continuous abnormal amounts of radiation ever since." He flipped his notebook to another page, absently running his eyes over the graphs detailing impossible numbers recorded over the past few weeks.

"Everything was pointing to the confirmation of my theory but…" He trailed off absent-mindedly, looking at the scribbled notes in front of him.

Laphicet, ever the smart kid, connected the dots the quickest.

"…So, now that the four Elemental Empyreans are awake," Laphicet asked, "shouldn't you still be receiving more of this radiation?" His eyes were wide and curious. "If it's really is a byproduct of Empyreans, that is."

Leo nodded again. "…Yeah, kid. That was the hypothesis, anyways." He shook his head, showing the malak his notebook.

"I've been taking readings over this past month ever since Innominat sucked us into the earthpulse.  _Everything_  lines up if we're only considering Innominat." He muttered. "The farther we go from the center, the shakier his domain becomes and the less prevalent the abnormal radiation amount is.  _Everything_  matches with the theory that Innominat is the source."

He sighed, slumping down on the snow in defeat. "But… Now that the Elemental Empyreans are awake, the radiation levels have returned to  _fucking normal_!" He seethed.

"The  _usual constant_!" He roared angrily, clutching his head. "The hell does that mean?!"

The group exchanged glances as the man abruptly shot to his feet, stalking off aimlessly in a circle in frustration.

"It just doesn't make sense!" Leo muttered quietly to himself into the wind. "Why would  _only_ Innominat influence the level of radiation in his domain, while the other Empyreans don't?"

He sighed abruptly, the tension suddenly flowing out of his body.

The group watched as he shoved his notebook back into his jacket. "…I'm going to bed." He announced abruptly. "There's just too much to think about right now."

As the man marched off to go set up his sleeping bag, Laphicet called out after him. "Goodnight, Leo!"

The man waved an absent hand over his shoulder, walking off. The rest of the group exchanged glances, the information Leo had just revealed sinking in.

The crackling of the dying fire accompanied the howling of the surrounding winds.

"…Well." Rokurou muttered quietly, breaking the silence. "This is just getting way too outta my league. Different worlds? Radiation?" He shook his head in disbelief. "Just give me a path and two feet to walk on it and I'll be fine." He declared.

"No kidding." Magilou muttered, her eyes pensive. "But still. No wonder our Leo's always so strange." She considered Leo absently. "All this time..."

Eizen grunted. "And from the way he made thing sound, he doesn't have a concrete way to get back to his home world. Yet he still seems determined to find his way home." He nodded pensively to himself. "An adrift sailor indeed."

Eleanor was distraught, watching at the man as he quietly readied himself for bed away from the rest of them. "…Leo…" She murmured quietly. Her thoughts were of the past; viewing the actions of old friend in a completely different light.

"Yeah…" Velvet breathed absent-mindedly, instead focusing more on the theory that Leo had divulged.

"A byproduct… of Innominat… huh?" She murmured quietly into the night.

By her side, Laphicet was similarly in deep thought.

The wind continued to moan hauntingly in the starry night above the group as they rested.

* * *

"Hey Leo!"

The teen's happy father greeted him as he stepped into the cool air-conditioned lab, shutting the door and letting it lock automatically behind him. Leo grinned as he leapt down the few steps leading to the doorway and eagerly ran up to his father by the server arrays, abandoning his backpack on one of the lab desks.

"Hey Dad!" He piped, clamping himself onto the man who chuckled warmly and reciprocated the hug.

"Easy there, son." The man grinned happily down at the boy latched to his waist. "You're gonna screw up my calculations!"

The boy gave him a sly look. "You do that by yourself anyways." Despite his words, he let go of his father and stepped back.

His father rolled his eyes. "Little rascal." He muttered fondly as he ruffled Leo's hair. "Just 'cuz you were smart enough to come up with the hypothesis doesn't mean you get to bully your old man, got it?"

The teen hummed, walking over to his own workstation and efficiently pulling out his notebooks and laptop. "I dunno, Dad." He shrugged wryly. "I just feel like I'm the one doing all the work nowadays."

"Oh, shut up you." The man shot a mock glare at his son over his shoulder. "I do plenty around here! I was the one who confirmed the presence of The Phenomenon in outer space, you know!"

"So I've heard." Leo waved his hands in paltry acknowledgement. "Sneaking hidden sensors onboard orbital satellites is hardly an achievement for such a rich guy like you."

"Don't forget, this 'rich guy' pays for your allowance." Leo's father grunted sourly as he typed away on his terminals.

Leo beamed back at him.

"Anyways," the teen waved off the banter, "How's the latest model? My ideas have any sense to them?"

The older man nodded, suddenly all business. "For the most part." He clacked away on the keyboard before bringing up the recent simulation. "Aside from a few technical anomalies that could probably be explained away one way or another, generally speaking the model holds in the simulation."

Leo nodded sagely. "See?!" He exclaimed. "I told you the software would work!"

"Yeah, yeah, brag about it, kid." His father rolled his eyes and switched desktops on his computer. "…Your hypothesis that different worlds would have varying levels of the phenomenon fits in well with our current understanding of the relative nature of the worlds."

He adjusted the glasses on his nose as his brows furrowed. "…That is if we assume that there is in fact a  _source_ of the phenomenon somewhere amidst all these worlds, causing such a varying level and explaining away the arbitrary constant seemingly assigned to our world."

He shook his head. "That would mean there is a single world out there that is the sole cause of all of this radiation across  _all_ worlds."

Leo nodded, trotting over to the server arrays with his own laptop in hand. "That makes the most sense to me." He admitted. "But it could just as easily be a whole range of other options. Maybe the phenomenon is a trans-world constant. Maybe there is no source at all." He shrugged, clicking his computer to open up a vast graph of suggested possibilities. "There's so much we don't know at this point."

His father nodded slowly, his eyes fixed on the models. His eyes zeroed in on the center dot of the virtual model. "But really… what could possibly be so powerful as to transmit such radiation across the fabric of worlds…?" He murmured quietly.

"And even more importantly… why? What purpose does it serve? Does it even have one?" He trailed off, profoundly curious and acutely aware of his lack of knowledge about the universe.

Leo shook his head. "You're getting ahead of yourself, Dad." He pointed out. "We don't even know the complete nature of the radiation." He pushed his laptop screen into his father's field of view. "Come on, Dad. Let's just go with my model for now and try to work out what the Davidson Phenomenon really is."

Shaking himself, his father grinned wryly. "Alright, son. We'll use your model for now." He abruptly narrowed his eyes. "And don't think for a second that you can use this as an excuse to skimp on your English homework, mister!"

Leo moaned angrily, slumping to the floor. "But  _daaaaaaad!_ " He moaned. "Middle school English just sucks so much! I don't wanna!"

His father just facepalmed. "I've got a genius for a kid and he turns out to be a lazy bum." He muttered sourly under his breath.

He jabbed a finger to the boy's backpack lying abandoned on the tabletop. "Go do your homework before you work on solving the nature of the universe." He demanded. "…Or you're not getting any allowance this week."

Leo's eye twitched. "Gah! You're so mean!" the teen whined as he stomped over, angrily ripping open his backpack and pulling out his textbook and notebooks.

His father just shook his head in amusement. "Heh… Sometimes, I wonder who you take after more. Me or your mother." With a fond scoff, he turned away, back towards the calculations on the server terminal.

Leo just stuck out his tongue at his father's back petulantly.

The whirling of the server fans, the clacking of Leo's father's keyboard, and the scratching of Leo's pencil on paper filled the content silence of the Davidson Laboratory.

In his sleep, Leonex Davidson smiled warmly as he dreamt.

* * *

The eastern gate of the town of Meirchio was a sight for sore eyes as the group finally arrived under the light of the morning sun beaming a cold light onto the landscape around them.

"Ahh…" Leo exhaled contently in the air, his breath clearly visible in the morning air, as the group made their way over to the unguarded gates. "Coming home after a job well done." He grinned.

Magilou rolled her eyes. "You're acting like we've killed Innominat already." She pointed out. "You do realize we've got a final showdown with a god, right?"

"Ah, stuff it, Magilou." Leo waved a hand as they walked into the shadows, approaching the gate. "You've gotta enjoy the small things, in life, you know? That's one thing I've learned ever since I started this whole world-travelling business."

"Evidently. You must've forgotten your common sense along the way too…" Magilou sighed in exasperation.

"Haha!" Rokurou chuckled and slapped a friendly hand on Leo's shoulder. "Nice one, Leo. It's good to see a like-minded individual in such troublesome times."

Leo gave the daemon a reproachful look. "Hey. I do have  _some_  common sense unlike you, you know."

Hawk took the opportunity to cough, loudly.

"Hey! What the hell's that supposed to mean!?" Leo yelled indignantly at his malak.

"Hush." Velvet spoke exasperatedly over her shoulder as she led the group forward. "We'll deal with it all later. First things first, we need to travel around, and tie up any loose ends before heading to the final battle." She slammed her fist on the gates in distinct code and waited for a response. "One thing at a time." She muttered.

Leo turned serious and nodded. "Yeah. Good plan." His eyes turned distant. "I've got a lot of research to do, and it would be vital to know all the facts we can about Innominat's nature before we head in to battle."

He blinked abruptly, remembering something. He turned to the rest of the group behind him. "Oh hey, Phi."

The malak blinked as he looked up from his petting of Hawk. "What's up, Leo?" He asked.

"Do you mind swinging by my room later? I have a machine of mine that I've already used with Velvet, and I'd like to conduct and experiment on you as well if possible." Leo proposed easily.

Laphicet's eyes were wide. "A-an experiment?" He parroted nervously.

Eleanor narrowed her eyes and put both hands on her hips. "Leo, I swear, if you have anything dangerous planned for Laphicet I'll-!"

"Don't worry about it, Eleanor!" Leo waved her off. "Velvet's already done it, and she's perfectly fine!" He hesitated. "…Well, as fine as she was before, that is." He shrugged helplessly.

Velvet shot him a wordless glare over his shoulder that he ignored.

"Anyways, it's nothing big." He explained, kneeling down to face the malak honestly. "What I'll do is hook you up to a machine which will read a bunch of information about your makeup and composition."

Laphicet cocked his head. "What for? Does it have something to do with Innominat?"

Leo nodded. "You're connected to Innominat too. It's all part of my research, and it's perfectly safe, I promise." He shrugged. "If you could bring Kamoana and Medissa over as well, that would be helpful. I'm taking readings on all of the therions."

Velvet added, "It doesn't hurt, Phi." She assured. "It's a quick zap. It might give you a little jump but it's nothing more than that."

Laphicet nodded. "Alright." He agreed. "I trust you, Leo." He smiled.

Magilou grinned as she leaned on the nearby cliff face. "And it would seem that everyone's lost their common sense as well." She shrugged. "Oh well."

Abruptly, the gates to Meirchio opened with a groan. The entire group turned to watch in surprise as a familiar figure strolled through the open gap.

Velvet blinked. "…Amy?!"

Indeed, Amy the trader of Stonebury stood waiting for the group at the gates of Meirchio, dressed in warm winter clothing with a grin on her face. "In the flesh!" She waved, beckoning them over. "Come on! We've got stuff to discuss!"

The group exchanged befuddled glances before collectively shrugging and following the Bloodwing agent inside the town. The gates smashed close behind them soundly.

"What are you doing here, Amy?" Leo asked as they followed the agent through the cold caverns towards the main body of town.

"The boss sent us." The trader explained simply as the group exited the cavern and into the warm, familiar town. "She got word that a bunch of rogue pirates had settled into the town overrun by the Lord of Calamity, without snow gear on top of everything else." She reported with a smirk.

"Wow!" Laphicet exclaimed as he swiveled his head around, glancing at the considerable amount of activity going on around town as strangers wearing blood-red bracelets and shoulder straps hustled about, helping move supplies to support the town whose current pirate occupants were not nearly as qualified to do so. "That's a lot of people!"

Velvet's eyebrows were skeptical. "All this for a town we're going to abandon? Doesn't seem very smart of Tabatha."

Amy shook her head. "It wouldn't've been a smart choice, except the Abbey's designated the area north of the Faldies Ruins as a class 4 administrative zone."

Realization dawned on Eizen's face. "You plan on turning the town into a haven against the Abbey, and as a new base of operations in Northgand." He concluded.

Amy grinned. "Bingo." She confirmed. "Any and all people who fight against the rule of the Abbey will be given shelter and asylum in the town of Meirchio, and conversely be recruited into the ranks of the Bloodwing Butterflies." She shrugged. "It just works both ways."

Eleanor's eyes were bright. "Then that's fantastic!" She exclaimed. "It looks like Meirchio won't be dying out after all."

Velvet shrugged. "Do as you like." She waved a hand. "Might as well make use of the land I stole."

Amy nodded. "We will. Naturally, the boss has welcomed the members of Aifread's pirates to use the town to their own ends as well." She grinned lopsidedly. "We criminals need to stick together, after all."

Laphicet piped up. "Hey Amy? What about Stonebury then? Are you not going back?"

Leo nodded. "What about Vincent or Zara? Your brother and niece?" He asked curiously.

Amy's expression fell slightly.

"…I won't be coming back." She murmured quietly. "My… help is needed over here, where I can do much more to help where I can work in the broad daylight, rather back home where only the shadows provide cover. Even if there's more shadows than ever back in Loegres."

She clenched her fists. "I have a duty to uphold." She reminded herself.

Leo nodded softly. "…You're strong, you know that, right?"

The trader let out a self-depreciating scoff. "Sometimes I wish I weren't." She admitted. "There isn't a day that goes by where I didn't wish I were still back in Stonebury, trading with my brother and niece and acting as if nothing is wrong in the world."

Velvet nodded quietly. "But there is." She muttered. "There is so much wrong with this world."

"Yes. Exactly." Amy agreed quietly.

The group walked in silence for a bit, the chattering of the new townsfolk surrounding them as they followed the main thoroughfare towards the inn.

"Hey Amy." Rokurou spoke up suddenly, a thoughtful hand on his chin. "How is the world right now, anyways?"

"That's right." Eleanor nodded, turning to the other woman. "How have things been ever since the awakening of the Elemental Empyreans?"

Amy nodded, empathetic to the group's need for knowledge. "From what word we've gotten from the network, it's bad."

Her eyes were hard. "The Abbey's foundations are crumbling. Lord Artorius is rumored to have shut himself into the Empyrean's Throne and forbidden anyone except the legates to contact him. All throughout the ranks, exorcists are losing their bonded malakhim whom have suddenly regained consciousness for some reason."

Velvet nodded. "Good. As we expected."

Laphicet was worried. "But that means that the towns aren't as well defended now, doesn't it?" He asked.

The trader nodded again. "Right. It would seem to most that the Age of Chaos is slowly returning. What remaining exorcists have been struggling to defend the major cities. Trade routes are once again being plundered by bandits and daemons, and the strict rule of the Abbey is being questioned by outraged citizens."

"So," Rokurou summarized simply, "it's really bad."

Magilou shrugged helplessly. "Well, them's the works, folks!" She announced. "You kill a few high-ranking legates, wake a few gods, and all of a sudden the world goes crazy!"

Amy shrugged. "And that's not to mention the intense climate changes around the world. Fishing shortages in Southgand, rapidly freezing temperatures interrupting crops in Eastgand. The Midgand empire is struggling hard to keep up with all of it."

"Prince Percival… is he alright?" Laphicet asked.

Amy nodded. "The Bloodwings have established a strong bond with the royalty of Midgand. I recommend you stop by and have a chat with him. I'm sure he knows much more about the situation than I do."

Velvet took the suggestion. "Alright. We'll do that then."

The trader sighed, shrugging her arms. "Anyways, that's about everything we know up until his point." Her eyes hardened.

"Still, all this chaos is a paltry price to pay for a life without emotions. Wouldn't you agree, Velvet?"

The therion hesitated, meeting the trader's eyes. "Yeah." She murmured. "…A necessary sacrifice…" She whispered.

Eleanor nodded quietly in agreement. "This is just how the world is." She murmured. "I've come to understand that now. That there is no right answer… only wrong ones."

Leo looked off into the frozen bay as they walked. "How the world is…" He huffed quietly.

"…Sounds about right."

The group continued to walk, contemplating the state of the world as the traversed the town of criminals.

A haven for those who were truly alive.

* * *

"Welcome back!" Benwick called as the group made their way through the empty docks of Hellawes over to his position next to the Van Eltia, all set and ready to sail. "I take it you defeated the legates." He grinned through the snowfall.

Velvet nodded as the group stopped in front of the man. "Yes, but that still leaves Innominat, and the Shepherd."

Leo grinned, lifting a grinning Kamoana from his shoulders and placing her properly on the ground next to a giddy Hawk. "One last battle, Benwick, then we'll be done." He shrugged. "Although we're going to be travelling around and tying up some loose ends before we head to the Empyrean's Throne to kick their butts."

"Haha! Yeah! We're gunna teach them a lesson!" Kamoana cried, bouncing up and down on the docks.

Hawk howled next to her, eagerly bouncing up and down as well.

Medissa promptly clamped her hand sternly on the excited therion's shoulder. "We'll teach them later, right after you take a bath." She rose a pointed eyebrow down at the child.

"Awe… Fine!" Kamoana groaned.

As Medissa shooed Kamoana and Hawk up the gangplank to the Van Eltia, Benwick gave Leo a determined nod. "One last battle it is. Aifread's pirates are happy to serve the Lord of Calamity however she wants!" He grinned happily. "Oh! Velvet!" He reached behind him into his bag and pulled out an apple. "Here! I picked something up for you!"

The therion caught the thrown apple curiously. "An… apple?" She asked hesitantly.

"It's a Fortune Apple." Benwick explained. "A good-luck charm." He shrugged. "No real powers… but they're hard to find. Legend has it they're pretty lucky."

Laphicet's eyes were wide as he trotted up to the woman, gazing at the fruit in her hands. "A Fortune Apple…!" He mumbled curiously.

Velvet chuckled. "Well, I appreciate the thought." She shrugged, tossing the apple and catching it in her bandaged hand. "Thanks, Benwick. I love apples."

"Just don't eat it!" Benwick reminded sternly.

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "I couldn't eat it, even if I wanted to." She reminded him.

Suddenly, she froze, her eyes locking onto the apple held in her hands.

Her grip on the apple tightened.

Leo blinked. "…Velvet?" He prompted the silent therion.

"What is it?" Laphicet piped up, cocking his head to the side.

Velvet blinked, turning and pasting a smile onto her face. "You want a bite?" She goaded. "Delicious Fortune Apple…" She dangled the apple in her hand over the malak, a hand on her hip.

"No way! That's a good luck charm!" Laphicet exclaimed.

"That it is." Velvet agreed, admiring the sheen of the apple in her hand. "…One to give you the courage you need to survive…"

Leo's brow furrowed silently as he studied the therion's face.

"Come on, guys! Let's get going!" Rokurou piped up as he moved forward past the rest of them towards the gangplank.

"Yes! I need a bath as well!" Magilou cried as she ran after him. "I'm starving too! Oh, how I would love a nap!"

"Do you ever stop complaining?" Eleanor groaned.

As the rest of the group filed up the gangplank, Leo stood there quietly, watching as Velvet gingerly tucked the apple away in her travel pack, a strange look on her face. Suddenly, her eyes shot up and met Leo's.

Then she quickly looked away.

Leo's frown deepened.

The snow continued to fall, pattering gently upon the sails of the Van Eltia as her crew prepared to set sail onwards, towards the horizon.


	55. C53 - Blessing

**Chapter 53 – Blessing.**

Leo stretched his arms as he walked through the quiet halls of the inn, groaning in relief as the tension in his bones eased away with the motion. Too much travelling wore down one's stamina regardless of how many worlds one had travelled before. It was just too much!

Granted, they'd only gone from Hellawes to Reneed… but still!

"Velvet! Let me in this instant!"

An urgent, frustrated rapping on a nearby door stopped Leo in his tracks as he turned the corner, blinking as he took in the sight of a harried-looking Eleanor yelling at a firmly closed inn door.

The muffled but distinct voice of the therion in question rang out through the door. "You can't come in." She declared firmly. "And if you do, I'll eat you!"

The threat fell flat against Eleanor's rage. "It's not just your room, you know!" She retaliated hotly.

Leo abruptly noticed the guys of the group coming down the opposite corridor, giving him inquisitive glances. He shrugged helplessly, pointing wordlessly towards the angry exorcist in the hall.

"You took an oath to obey my every command if you lost our fight." Velvet's stern voice rang out through the hallway. "And I'm commanding you to wait just a  _little_ longer."

"Ugh…!" Eleanor slapped a palm to her forehead in frustration, seething silently.

As one, the guys stepped forward curiously towards the irritated woman. "What are you doing out here in the hall?" Laphicet asked worriedly.

Eleanor sighed. "I left to go out on a little errand, but when I came back, Velvet had shut me out of our room." She explained in exasperation. "I've been standing here for over half an hour." She groaned. "She seems no closer to letting me in! I don't know what to do."

Leo scratched his head. "The hell?"

"Any idea what she's doing inside there?" Eizen inquired.

"No, I don't have a clue." Eleanor narrowed her eyes pensively, raising a thoughtful finger to her chin. "All I can tell you is that sometimes I hear something like deep breathing… and soft moaning…"

Leo choked on his saliva.

As the man coughed vigorously in the background, the other men exchanged confused glances. "Well," Eizen crossed his arms, "she must be doing something in there she doesn't even want a fellow woman to see…"

"Hmm…" Rokurou hummed. "Something she doesn't want seen…" He parroted. Abruptly, he snapped his fingers. "Do you think maybe she's weighing herself?" He suggested.

Hawk took that moment to appear next to his suffering master and give the daemon swordsman a stare of raw, untamed disbelief.

Eleanor shook her head seriously. "Even if you allow for getting undressed and then dressed again, there's no chance it takes half an hour to weigh yourself." She refuted.

Leo exchanged incredulous glances with his malak behind her back.

"Could she be putting on makeup?" Eizen suggested. "I've been yelled at for barging in on that before… although not by Velvet."

Eleanor shook her head again. "That's just because you're a guy. I hardly think Velvet would have a problem with me seeing that."

"Nope. I'm done." Leo announced abruptly, turning on his heel and launching himself straight forward. "I'm done! Done!" He yelled, walking briskly away from the group of idiots. Hawk ran quickly after him down the hall.

"What's wrong with him?" Rokurou blinked.

"LISTEN UP!"

Suddenly, Leo yelped as Magilou danced around the corner urgently, pushing the man and his malak backwards into the rest of the group, Bienfu hot on her heels. "This is no time to just stand there lollygagging, kiddo!" She announced. "Velvet is obviously in great danger THIS VERY MINUTE! Her  _life_ is hanging in the balance!"

The others' eyes widened in alarm.

_Oh no._

Leo glared at the witch. "Magilou…!" He growled lowly, stepping forward and putting himself soundly between her and the boy she was trying to corrupt.

"She's right!" Leo cursed as Bienfu slipped around him. "You know Velvet! Never letting her weaknesses show!" He urged impassionedly and heatedly. "She probably kicked Madam Eleanor out because she didn't want anyone to see her in such bad-bad pain!"

"Now hold on a second! Let's not jump-!" Leo tried vainly to stop the card the evil witch was playing.

"It would explain the heavy breathing and moaning, too." Magilou added logically.

Eleanor's worried expression deepened. "…Now that you mention it, right before I left, she had a stiff expression and she did not look well."

"You could interpret that in a bunch of different ways!" Leo tried desperately.

"Hush!" Magilou shook her head, turning brightly to the kid watching her with wide eyes. "Well, kiddo?! Are you going to abandon her in her time of need?!" Her grin deepened. "The moment to test your mettle has come at last!" She declared dramatically.

"Don't listen to her, Phi!" Leo pleaded. "It's just another evil trick!"

Laphicet's eyes flew between him and the witch. "Test… my mettle…" He parroted quietly.

Leo glared at the witch, scrambling for words to try and dissuade her corruption attempt. "Magilou… there's a special place in hell for you if you do this…!" He snarled. By his feet, Hawk let out a similar warning growl.

Magilou slyly slid her eyes to the man trying oh so hard to stop her machinations. "Oh, like I care." She whispered back.

With a flourish, she sang out wildly, "Will you go in there, or won't you?!" Her voice echoed through the hallway. "The fated decisive hour has finally arrived!"

"…VELVET!" Leo cringed at Laphicet's shout as he charged forward, bursting heroically through the doorway.

_Oh gods._

Frantically, the man readied himself for the worst. He braced alongside his malak as the rest of the group charged in behind Phi into the therion's room.

"…What is it, Phi?"

Velvet's voice wasn't angry, or hysterical, or frantic, or possessing any of the other qualities Leo had expected.

Leo blinked and exchanged a glance with Hawk. Slowly, hesitantly, the two peeked their heads into doorway and glanced into the room as if afraid they would be burnt alive on the spot.

"Huh?!" Laphicet's stammering voice reached the two as they saw the rest of the group standing and staring at the entryway to the room. "W-well I thought you might die… so I… so I…!" Laphicet stammered.

Leo stared.

There, standing in the middle of the room with an almost comically mundane white apron covering her tattered clothing, was the Lord of Calamity, mopping the floors of a Reneed inn room. "Seriously?" She raised a single eyebrow in disbelief. "A little cleaning isn't gonna kill me." She pointed out.

"But you were looking pale, and we could hear you breathing strangely and making weird sounds!" Eleanor pointed out urgently.

The therion shifted her weight in confusion. "I don't think I was breathing strangely."

"Then was that noise?" Laphicet piped up. "It sounded like… 'Huff… Huff…'" He exhaled deeply.

"When you're cleaning glass, you breathe on it first, don't you?" Velvet pointed out as if it were obvious.

Rokurou deadpanned. "Then… what about the moaning?"

Velvet's eye twitched. "The inn has this room cleaned regularly, but they missed a lot of the details." She sighed. "When I looked at the cups, I saw they still had tea stains from whoever drank out of it last. That's enough to make anyone moan in disappointment."

"Oh… I see…" Eleanor massaged her temples in exasperation. "…But if you'd told me you were cleaning the room, I would have offered to help, you know." She pointed out.

Velvet pointed out sagely, "Everyone has their own unique way of cleaning things, so in the end it's just faster to do it myself." She waved a hand, smiling. "My sister had her own ways, and I'm sure you do too, right?"

Eleanor shrugged helplessly. "Yeah… I guess so." She conceded.

Quietly, Leo made his way up behind the rest of the group and gave Magilou as vicious a glare as he could muster.

The witch simply hummed innocently and twined her hands behind her head, as if she hadn't just attempted to corrupt an innocent child's mind. Shameless.

_Time for a comeuppance._

Leo snapped his fingers vengefully.

With a savage growl, Hawk leapt into action, leaping forward and ripping his fangs into the witch's hat before promptly summersaulting backwards and making a run for it, absurdly large hat held firmly in his mouth.

"NOOOOoooooOOO!" Magilou screamed, charging furiously after the malak down the hallway, her hair flapping in the breeze. "GIVE BACK MY HAT! I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG!" She squealed in denial.

"MISS MAGILOU!" Bienfu cried, flying after his master.

"NO! STOP! Don't you DARE throw that hat in with those praying mantises! NO! NOOOOOO!"

The witch's screams echoed throughout the inn, making all the inhabitants open their doors in befuddlement and surprise.

Leo grinned savagely in satisfaction, mentally praising Hawk for a job well done. He turned back to the group staring at him with a grin. "I must agree with you, Velvet." He remarked casually. "Cleaning filth really is quite enjoyable!" He observed gleefully.

The group exchanged confused glances.

"R-right." Velvet muttered in hesitant assent.

"Whew!" Leo grinned happily, whistling as he stepped back out into the hallway. "What a relief to have that all done!" He declared as he resumed his walk, headed calmly back to his room. "Later, guys!" He waved.

Rokurou spoke up in the silence that followed, "…No, seriously. What's wrong with him?"

Laphicet shrugged helplessly. "Who knows."

Together, the group shared a shrug of confusion, utterly clueless.

* * *

"So, what's the plan, Laphicet?"

Rokurou prompted the next morning as the group gathered out in front of the Reneed Inn underneath the eaves as the rain poured over the lands once more. "Do you still intend to look for that next ingredient for the Omega Elixir?" The daemon asked.

Magilou shrugged helplessly. "Why bother? Time is short and we're out of leads. Videl's already in the final stages, and we have no idea what the last ingredient could be."

Leo glanced anxiously at the conflicted malak, obviously worried sick for his friend Videl whom had turned out to have been inflicted by the Twelve-Year Sickness.

The very same illness that Laphi…

His gaze shifted to Velvet's hard eyes as she watched the malak deliberate uncertainly. Her voice was cold. "I know it's sad, but there's nothing we can do. Videl was fated for this end from the start." She stated mildly.

Leo blinked in surprise at the therion's harshness.

Laphicet's voice was helpless. "Is there… really nothing we can do?"

"Don't feel guilty." Velvet urged. "None of this is your fault. And you've been a good friend to him." She shrugged, looking off to the side. "Besides, the Omega Elixir is a fool's errand anyways." She tossed out coldly.

"How could you say that…!" Laphicet uttered softly, clearly hurt.

"Geez, Velvet!" Magilou butted in. "Even I'd have tried to soften that one."

"No," Leo interrupted quietly, "She's right." Laphicet's hurt eyes shifted to him. He kept his gaze hard and firm. "Life just deals you cards." He shrugged callously. "There's no point in fighting back. Might as well just face that fact head on and accept it, as painful as it might be."

"Right." Velvet agreed, making eye contact with her friend. She gave him a subtle nod. "It might hurt in the moment, but in time, everything will just be another memory." She stated, looking off distantly.

Her grin turned feral. "...A sad memory you'll keep tucked away from when you need it."

"…How can you two  _talk_  like that?!" Laphicet burst out angrily. "Both of you! Videl's still alive!" He yelled out into the rain. "And what about all his research?! The Omega Elixir is real! I'm sure of it!" He yelled.

"I'm…" He shook himself determinedly. "I'm not ready to give up!"

"Then stop talking about it and keep on looking." Velvet ordered sharply.

"H-huh?" Laphicet stammered at her abrupt change in tone.

"Once you've lost him Phi," Velvet spoke quietly, "it'll be too late. No matter how sorry you feel. No matter how deeply your regret." She closed her eyes softly. "…Regrets don't change into memories. They hang over you like a living nightmare."

"That's right, kid." Leo nodded softly. "Do what you know is right, regardless of how helpless you might feel." His expression hardened as his own demons flew through his eyes. "I didn't… and look at me now." He twitched his mouth upwards in a weak smile that faded quickly.

Velvet shifted on her feet. "The two of us… well, how do I put it…"

Leo shrugged. "We know all about regrets, is all. We both have things we wished we'd done differently when we had the chance." He explained.

Velvet's eyes were soft. "But you haven't lost your friend yet." She pointed out. "Or your hope."

"…Yeah." Laphicet nodded his head determinedly. "That's right…"

"Keep your chin up, Phi." Leo encouraged softly. "Just do what you know is right. That's all I can say."

"…Okay!" Laphicet declared heatedly. "Then I'm going to find that fourth ingredient! I'm going to take another look at Videl's notes!"

"You go do that." Velvet mumbled under her breath. She shared a soft, companionable smile with Leo as Laphicet threw himself back into his work, properly riled up.

"That kid's gonna outlive us all." Leo muttered.

Velvet huffed lightly. "I hope so."

The rain continued to fall.

* * *

The night was quiet as the group settled down for the night, finding camp on a quiet level cliff in the middle of the Aldina Plains.

All around them, the chirping of the insects and rodents burrowing through the grass below filled the air as a hollow, peaceful breeze meandered across the air, playing with the campfire positioned in the middle of the stone outcropping.

Laphicet sighed, leaning back on his pack and holding up the World Tree Leaf Videl's father had given to him. His thoughts ran rampant as he considered what the poor exorcist must've been going through, and what he must've believed he was subjecting his own son to by giving the leaf to him.

"All that's left is a malak's prayers, huh?"

Leo's musing drew Laphicet's attention as the man settled himself down onto the grass next to the malak, the wind rustling through his hair. "I think we've got this Omega Elixir in the bag; wouldn't you say Phi?" He grinned.

"Yeah." Laphicet nodded determinedly, sitting up and carefully stowing the ingredient away in his bag. "We'll save him, just you watch!"

Leo chuckled, nodding in agreement. "That's the spirit, kid."

He glanced idly over at the rest of the group, busy chatting away themselves over the fire farther down the sloped outcropping. "Velvet and I… we're glad, you know that?" He stated. "You've got that one trait that we both lost along the way, one way or another."

"And… what was that?" Laphicet asked curiously.

He sighed, cracking his neck in exhaustion and laying down fully onto the grass besides the malak. "…Hope." He muttered quietly, staring up at the stars. "There's not much left of that in either of us."

He reached out his hand, clenching the moon idly with his fist. "When I was young… all I wanted to do was to explore the worlds with my father." He muttered. "Not physically, but scientifically. To make theories in of itself was an adventure to me." He chuckled softly. "I mean, travelling between worlds also sounded cool as hell, of course, but all I really wanted as a kid was to be there at my father's side, with our cool family secret."

The shine in his eyes faded as his arm flopped down to the ground.

"And then I lost hope." He muttered quietly. "My dad died alone, my mother died not long after because of that, and then all I was left with was a big load of empty materialistic things and no point in life."

He shook his head disdainfully. "Or at least, that's what I had thought back then. I never even realized until after that if I had genuinely hoped to find my purpose in life once more… I would've found the answer sitting right besides me." He murmured.

"…And now I probably never will." He finished dejectedly.

Laphicet took the information in quietly, sitting and watching the man as his eyes glazed over sadly, a haunted look on his face.

"But Leo…" Laphicet spoke up quietly. "You're still going." He pointed out.

The man looked at him in surprise.

Laphicet elaborated, "You're  _still_ alive. I know you are, Leo." He shook his head determinedly, quickly gathering up his thoughts. "Despite everything you've been through, you're here, helping  _us_ instead of moving on. That must mean you still have hope… hope for happiness!"

The malak argued impassionedly, "I don't believe that you or Velvet are completely lost!" He declared heatedly. "Both of you helped encourage me when I was feeling down about the Omega Elixir, and both of you have been so helpful in helping me find the ingredients!"

"You haven't lost hope, Leo." He finished, winding down. "I don't believe it."

The howling of the wind surrounding the two quieted, the cricketing and calling of the nocturnal insects below filling the silence.

A smile slowly made his way onto Leo's face as he stared at the malak.

"…Damn." He cursed fondly, shaking his head. "The kid always has to lecture his elders." He muttered in mock irritation.

Laphicet grinned. "That's fine! It's just what friends do, isn't it?"

"Oh, shut up, kid." He ruffled the malak's hair in annoyance. "You don't get to regurgitate my lines back to me, alright?"

"Haha! You can't stop me!" Laphicet laughed.

"I guess not…" Leo rolled his eyes, settling himself back on the grass and cradling his neck behind his arms as he gazed up at the stars, quieting.

"Haven't lost hope… huh." He murmured softly to himself.

He froze.

And just like that, the idea had hit him.

"…Say, Laphicet?" His voice was curiously stiff.

The malak blinked, looking over. "What's wrong?"

"That night when we were headed to Mount Killaraus to fight the legates… you mentioned something about being able to seal off Innominat?"

Laphicet nodded. "Right. Except…" He looked away, dejectedly. "…I haven't gotten any closer to mastering my powers. If only I had… I'm sure I could find a way to cancel out Innominat's powers and seal him away!"

Abruptly, Leo sat up, ignoring the residual shards of grass sticking to his coat and whirled around to the malak, his mind racing with potential.

"What say I help you out with that?" He proposed suddenly.

"Huh?" Laphicet cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

Quickly, Leo reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his notebook, flipping animatedly to the pages of his research.

"When you let me test your body with my devices back in Meirchio, the  _one_  thing that stood out to me the most from the results was just how much  _more_  radiation was present in your body as opposed to Velvet or Kamoana or Medissa."

He shook his head. "I'm not sure, but I'm still positive that there's some connection between the radiation I'm receiving in my device and Innominat. And conversely, with you and the therions." He tapped his pencil thoughtfully against his temple.

"I have a few hypotheses, but nothing concrete. If you were willing, you could help me out by attempting to manipulate matter in very specific ways based on conjectures attained from my research."

"That way, we could help develop your powers as a fragment of Innominat as well as help uncover the true nature of Innominat!" Leo finished grandly, looking expectantly at the malak.

He physically reigned himself in, forcing himself to untense.

"Um, T-that is if you want to… I wouldn't want to make you feel like an experiment or something like that…" He trailed off uncertainly.

Laphicet abruptly laughed, startling Leo.

"Leo," the malak giggled, "I have a hard time seeing you doing anything bad to me. You are the girliest person here, you know!"

Leo deadpanned at the giggling malak. "…Even though you just gave me permission, I don't feel happy about it for some reason." He grunted sourly.

Laphicet just laughed some more.

Despite himself, Leo found a grin creeping onto his face. "Alright. Then it's settled!" He snapped the notebook in his hand closed decisively. "Phi, we're going to make you as powerful as the partial god you are!"

"Alright!" Laphicet nodded back determinedly. "I'll protect Velvet, with everything I have!" He pumped his fist into the air. "Thanks Leo!"

Leo chuckled. "Like I said, kid." He murmured softly. "Hope. You've still got it."

"And like I said, Leo," Laphicet retaliated promptly, "you've got hope as well!" He pointed out. "Hope for the future!"

The man looked at the malak in surprise, freezing in surprise.

"…Huh." He murmured quietly, pensively gazing at the notebook in his hands. "Would you look at that. I do." He chuckled softly in amazement.

"Weird."

That night Leo slept well, dreaming of brighter times.

* * *

"I'm sorry…"

The absent, weak mewling of the sickly boy as he lay dying on his bed jarred on Leo's nerves as he stood at the back of the room, watching tensely with the rest of the group.

"I'm sorry, Laphicet… I'm sorry I… I told you to… to go away…" Videl mumbled in his fevered sleep.

The one he was most likely never going to wake up from.

"I really… wanted to talk to you… more…"

By his bedside, Laphicet shook his head urgently. "It's fine! Really! That doesn't matter now!" He shouted, hoping beyond hope to reach the unconscious boy. "You're my friend!"

At Leo's side, Velvet's hands were balled into fists. The two of them watched together as Laphicet took an urgent step forward.

"There's… so much of the world you still need to see! You  _have_ to get better!" He pleaded. "So we can go on adventures together… okay?!"

A single tear left the malak's cheek and fell, directly onto the gathered ingredients in his hand.

A flash of pure blue light lit up the room, an otherworldly hum reaching the occupants' ears as the magical materials combined to form the famed miracle substance.

"It's the Omega Elixir!" Eizen muttered in amazement, staring at the shining liquid cupped in the malak's hands. "So… it wasn't really a malak's prayers…"

Velvet nodded quietly, happily. "It… was their tears." She murmured.

Leo sighed quietly, finding a chair behind him and sitting down with wooden legs. "…He did it." He grinned happily as the realization settled in. "Laphicet, you fucking did it!" He exclaimed happily.

Videl's mother had wide, uncomprehending eyes. "P-please! Give my boy the medicine!" She begged.

Laphicet nodded quickly. "Of course!" He turned to the boy. "Here you go, Videl." The group watched with bated breath as the malak carefully slid the precious substance into the mouth of the sickly child.

And all of a sudden, Videl stopped moaning. His ragged breathing leveled out. His feverish mumbling tapered out in favor of soft snoring.

Finally, after twelve years of fevered dreams, the sickly child slept peacefully.

His mother let out a scream of pure joy and relief. "Videl!" She sobbed happily, clutching the sleeping boy's precious form. "Oh, gods!" She cried, wetly kissing her boy's cheeks. "How… how could I  _ever_ repay you young man?!" She asked quietly, raising her head in upmost gratitude towards Laphicet.

Laphicet's smile couldn't be warmer. "You don't have to. This is just what friends do, after all."

The mother's sobs of pure joy and relief warmed the group as they left quietly, giving the joyfully relieved woman her privacy.

Break.

"Awe…" Magilou grinned as she leaned the stone wall outside of the inn next to Leo. "And here I was anticipating much wailing and gnashing of teeth. Haha!" She chuckled. "Videl turned out to be pretty resilient, huh?"

Eleanor deadpanned. "Can't you just say, 'Good job,' like a normal person?"

"Tsk. You're no fun." Magilou grinned cheerily. "You did good, kid!"

"Thanks!" Laphicet grinned brightly. "But I might have given up if not for Velvet and Leo's encouragement."

Velvet shrugged. "All we did was rile you up. I wouldn't call it encouragement."

Eleanor rubbed her temples. "Not you too, Velvet." She groaned.

Leo chuckled lightly.

"Anyway," Velvet went on, "that was a noble thing you did, Laphicet." She smiled proudly. "You really held onto your hope all the way through."

"Yeah." Laphicet grinned. "I just… didn't want to give up on Videl." His face fell. "But… I haven't felt loss like you or Leo have, Velvet. If I had I… I don't think I would have been so sure of myself."

Velvet's voice was bright. "But I think you'll still have it in you, even if you ever do lose something dear."

Leo blinked.

Laphicet cocked his head in confusion. "…Huh? Why?"

Velvet shrugged it off. "…That's just the feeling I get, alright? Look," she shook her head, "I'm tired of Eleanor's grumbling, so I thought I'd say something nice for once. That's all."

"Could you not make this my fault?!" Eleanor grumbled sourly.

Laphicet laughed. The rest of the group shared smirks.

Amidst the relieved happiness, Leo kept a sharp eye on his friend. Velvet's eyes were distant as her smile faded, a strange emotion passing over her expression.

It was almost like… longing.

High up above them, the rain pouring over Reneed tapered out slowly, dropping like a malaks's tears.


	56. C54 - Magickazam

**Chapter 54 – Magickazam.**

"I… regret… everything I've done in life." Leo muttered sourly.

"Come, come! Don't be like that, you'll do great!" Magilou replied easily with a savage grin as the two walked through the dressing rooms. "Just follow my lead and act like you normally do! I'm sure your strange, erratic behavior will win the audience over just like that!" She snapped her fingers sharply, the sound echoing through the wooden hallway they were walking through.

Leo glared angrily at the woman. "This is just because of the whole praying mantises and hat thing, isn't it?" He grumbled.

"I have no earthly idea what you're talking about." Magilou chirped happily. "Here!" She abruptly seized Leo's shoulders and brought him to a halt, pushing his back straight and fiddling with his hair. "You  _need_  to relax." She lectured wisely. "The jokes ebb and flow like tide in a river. All you have to do is go with what your heart tells you to. Simple!"

Leo deadpanned back. "Currently, my heart's telling me to hide some more mantis eggs in your hat tomorrow night."

He shook his head. "And why the hell am I doing this?! The other shows went so terribly for everyone else!" He shuddered, thinking of Eleanor's "performance" in Taliesin. "Why do I have to suffer through that, too?!"

"Because you're part of Magilou's Menagerie as well, of course!" The witch grinned. "Just think of how rewarding it will be to see those bright, shining smiles and hear those fine, breathy laughs as you bring the audience to stitches with your clever, razor-sharp wit!"

Leo's eye twitched. "Just who the hell do you think I am?!" He yelled

Abruptly, a man down the hallway yelled at the two of them. "Hey, you! Magilou's Mena-something. Get going! Your show's scheduled in a minute!"

"It's Magilou's  _Menagerie_!" Magilou yelled back. "Get it right!" She huffed indignantly and turned to her comedy partner. "Come on, Leo! Break a leg." She encouraged.

Leo groaned.

"Can I just leave this world yet…?" He muttered sourly as he followed the woman.

The crowds of Loegres awaited him.

* * *

A polite round of applause greeted Leo and Magilou as they stepped out onto the stage, the patrons of the tavern turning expectantly in their seats towards the latest batch of entertainers.

"Hi there!" Magilou smiled happily, waving flashily at the crowd. "We're "Magi-Leo," your mysterious neighborhood comedy duo coming to you all straight from another world!"

"Magickazam!" She declared, dancing on one foot and pointing to the left with a wink.

Leo's eye twitched as he glared at the woman. "What the hell, woman?!" He yelled. "You can't just say stuff like that to these people! What's wrong with you?!"

Magilou recoiled dramatically in surprise from the man's outburst. "Whoa! What's gotten into you, Leo?" She retaliated. "You got something to hide or something?"

"N-no." Leo's lip stiffened as he glanced warily at the audience staring up at the two of them. "I have nothing of the sort to hide. I'm a completely honest, proper, law-abiding citizen!"

"Oh? Is that so?" The witch sauntered around the man, circling him while spinning lightly. "Hm?" She abruptly stopped, sniffing the air. "What's that smell?"

Leo twitched, his entire body rigid. "What smell? I don't smell anything." He made a big show of sniffing the air. "Hm. It might be that you haven't bathed in three and a half weeks, perhaps?" He suggested wryly to the shorter woman.

Magilou's face soured as she glared at the man. "How dare you! I'll have you know that I bathe three times a day! If I find even the smallest speck of dirt on my body, I'll have to scrub it until the skin goes raw!"

She blinked, abruptly. "…Hey! Don't try to change the subject! I know what I smell!"

Leo twitched nervously. "A-are you sure?"

The witch grinned evilly, leaning forward nose-first. "I smell… a dog!" Her grin widened. "Ahah! I've caught you red-handed, Leo! Smuggling wild animals into the fine city of Loegres. You should be ashamed!"

"Uh… uh…! I…!" Leo stammered.

"You've got a dog right there in your pants!" Magilou accused.

Leo abruptly started coughing. "The fuck?!" He sputtered. "That wasn't part of the script!" He yelled.

Magilou shook her head. "Forget the script! I think you  _actually_ have a dog inside your pants! A big, hairy, stinky dog!" She yelled in alarm. "Quick! We need to get it out before it suffocates!" She rushed at the man's pants with arms outstretched.

"ARGH!" Leo cried, genuine mortification in his expression. "GET THE HELL AWAY FROM MY DOG, WOMAN!"

"NO! I will not allow such a wild, mangy thing in our great city! I have to remove it from your pants right this very instant!" Magilou yelled as she chased after the man.

"GAH!" Leo roared as he dodged back, using every ounce of his combat training to dodge briskly away from the witch's lunges. "It's my dog and you have no right to tell me what I do with or how I take care of it!" He yelled defensively.

"No! I will not condone such secrecy! Show me your dog, wretch!" Magilou cried valiantly as she charged forward once more.

THUMP.

The two comedians froze, staring at the thing that had fallen out from Leo's jacket, whining in confusion at the bright lights around him.

Hawk shook the stars out of his eyes and looked up at the witch pleadingly, whining, begging for her to let his master and him live in peace.

"…Come on, Magi." Leo pleaded quietly, his voice echoing across the stage.

"Look at him. I found him out there in the wild, bleeding to death after a pack of daemons had attacked him. He has nobody left to save him. He wouldn't last a day out there."

He kneeled down softly, petting the whining, helpless puppy. "Come on. The poor guy won't do anyone any harm… He's my friend. Please?" He pleaded up at the witch standing before him.

"…" Magilou sighed dramatically. "…Ugh! Fine!" She yelled abruptly, turning away. "The dog can stay! Just get it out of my sight."

Leo sighed in relief, hugging the puppy in genuine happiness. Hawk yipped happily, licking his new master's face.

"Come on, buddy." He urged. "Go say thank-you to the nice woman."

With a happy yip, Hawk launched himself gleefully at the witch from behind, landing squarely on the woman's back and licking her cheeks.

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Magilou's scream pierced the room as she panicked, flailing her arms around wildly as the pup on her shoulder held on for dear life. "NO! Have you any idea how much I'll have to scrub to get this crap off my precious skin?! Let! Me! Goooooo!"

With a comedic whistle, Hawk was sent flying high into the air and into the obscured rafters above. He didn't fall back down.

"Forget it!" Magilou cried heatedly, advancing angrily upon the wide-eyed Leo. "I will not condone it! That dog needs to go,  _right this instant_!" She yelled.

Leo sighed. "…Fine. As you say, Magi. I'll release him back outside." He hung his head dejectedly.

"Good! I won't leave until you do!" Magilou hmphed, laboriously scrubbing at her marred skin.

The two stood there in silence for a bit.

Abruptly, Magilou began sniffing again.

"…Leo." She asked quietly. "Please tell me that's not another dog I smell."

Leo stared at her in confusion. "Oh. No. That's just me." He shrugged. "I haven't bathed in three and a half weeks."

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Magilou's scream pierced the room once more as she fled backstage, arms flailing.

Leo chuckled as he stood up. He abruptly whistled up at the rafters expectantly. With a quiet ruff in response, Hawk fell lightly from the shadowed rafters above and landed neatly on Leo's shoulder with a thump.

"Good boy." He grinned happily, ruffling the wolf's head.

He wrinkled his nose. "…Although I do think I need a bath now."

Hawk whined sagely in agreement.

Just like that, the man walked off backstage, to the scattered applause of the audience.

* * *

"So!" Magilou chirped, a finger to her temple. "How'd we do?" She asked the manager in the dressing room. "We tried to mix in a little bit of acting in there this time as well. Trying to go for a tamer, more down-to-earth sort of vibe, ya know?"

The man let out a long sigh. "I'll… just say one thing." He promised.

Leo and Hawk exchanged a glance.

"…I'm pretty sure the dog's acting was what won the crowd over. You should've had him perform the entire thing by himself."

Magilou's eye twitched. "Oh, come on!" She yelled angrily.

Leo sighed, rubbing his face. "You know, somehow, I'm not surprised." He muttered sourly.

Hawk huffed arrogantly, puffing out his chest.

"Oh, be quiet, mutt. You still smell." He muttered.

* * *

Leo sighed, massaging his face as he rested comfortably in a luxurious plushy chair, glancing absently around the spacious chamber he was in as he relaxed. The Loegres Villa had quite the impressive library, that was for sure.

"Did it really go that badly?"

Leo looked over tiredly as Velvet made her way over to him, a book in hand. She slid easily into the chair across from him, an eyebrow raised expectantly.

He sighed. "…Well, no." He shook his head. "It didn't go as badly as your first performance, that's for sure." He observed wryly.

The therion rolled her eyes. "If you think I care, you'd be sorely mistaken." She cracked open the book she was carrying and began paging idly through it.

Leo shrugged, playing with a bullet in his hand. "Still. I don't know, Velvet." He shrugged dramatically. "I just… don't think I'm cut out for this whole comedian business. You know what I mean?"

"Huh. Leonex Davidson's jokes aren't funny." Velvet deadpanned. "Who would've thunk."

"Ouch." Leo hissed. "That one stung." He blinked, reading the tile of the book Velvet had picked up. "…'Proposed Alternate Calendars to the Desolation Calendar?'" He read, his head tilted to the side in line with the cover. "You thinking about bringing that up with the prince or something?"

Velvet shook her head. "More like the prince brought it up with me." She explained, handing him the open book. "He's got quite the plans for the world, from changing official records to switching calendar systems." She shrugged lightly. "It's actually nice to know, I suppose. If we manage to beat Innominat, that there's going to be a world left to rise from the ruins."

Leo nodded appreciatively. "Right…" He intoned, deep in thought as he observed the page the book was open to. "…The Greenwood Calendar, huh? At least, it sounds a lot cheerier." He shook his head softly, shutting the book.

"You know, despite everything I've seen in this world, the people still surprise me." He recounted fondly. "The ability of the random person on the street to simply keep going about his or her day, despite the uncertainty of tomorrow…" He shook his head, meeting Velvet's gaze. "…That's a cause to fight for, I'd reckon."

"…Yeah. I guess." Velvet looked away. "Of course, the Lord of Calamity wouldn't stoop so low as to care about the future of humanity." She pointed out.

Leo was quiet for a bit at that, playing absent-mindedly with the bullet in between his fingers as he sat there.

"…Velvet." He muttered quietly. "You're… okay, right?" He asked hesitantly.

She blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"

Leo shook his head. "I mean… this whole thing with Innominat being connected to the therions and Phi… I Just…" Leo stammered, searching for words.

"…I just want to make sure you know... that I'm trying my best." He shook his head abruptly. "No,  _we're_ trying our best, okay?" He uttered, maintaining eye contact with his friend. "Phi and I." Leo elaborated. "We're both trying our best to figure out the best way to seal Innominat."

"I've got a few experiments to try out with the kid, since he's a part of Innominat as well. In the meantime, we'll also be working on developing his powers, so that he can better control the silver flame and seal away Innominat, alright?" Leo explained softly. "So, don't keep going around acting like you're going to be leaving this world forever, okay?"

Velvet looked away quietly. "…Alright." She breathed. "I will. Thanks, Leo."

The man smiled softly. He reached over and gave the therion a pat on the shoulder. "We're here for you, alright? If you have a problem, just let us know."

"…I will." Velvet muttered as the man walked away, looking for something to occupy himself amongst the countless shelves. Her eyes fell down onto her bandaged left hand.

She clenched it into a fist, hard.

The Lord of Calamity stayed there, the darkness simmering just below the surface of her skin.

* * *

"…Come, sinner, and repent your wicked deeds!"

Leo blinked, glancing around at the rest of the group as they trudged through the cathedral on their way back to the center of Loegres. "…Who, me?" Leo asked in disbelief. "Out of all of the people I'm with, you think  _I'm_  the sinner?"

The priest grumbled sourly, "I've already been through all of them and not a single one of them will truly repent!" He shook his head, eyes lasering on his latest victim. "Besides! I can tell simply from the ragged, haunted look in your eyes that you have many past sins you wish to repent!"

Leo blinked. "Oh. Well if that's the case, yeah. I do have things I want to repent."

"…What." The priest blinked, dumbfounded.

The man shrugged lightly, hefting the rifle slung on his shoulder habitually. "I've got plenty of things in life that I regret, father." He admitted. "I'd happily go back in time if I could and change them, but naturally, I can't do that."

The priest nodded sagely, appearing more and more fatherly by the second. "Y-Yes, my son." He demurred. "The wrongs of the past are written in stone. But… one must almost remember that even the most beautiful of houses are built upon ugly, unseemly rock."

He made eye contact with the Leo, eagerly, almost hungrily. "Please, my son. Speak, and the Empyreans shall listen to you. Remember that all who dwell in this world are promised forgiveness should they merely repent."

"…Er, sorry." Leo sighed. "I guess we've hit a bit of a snag, then."

The priest's eye twitched. "What? Already?" He gaped incomprehensibly. "What sort of problem could we have possibly have run into so quickly?!"

"You see…" Leo played sheepishly with a bullet in his hands. "I'm kinda… not from this world."

"…" The priest just stared.

The man continued openly, "Actually, I'm from a different world entirely. I've been here for just a few years now… but still, I've really come to enjoy your guys' world."

He smiled happily. "I've made dear friends despite my fears, and I've really come to realize the importance of simply appreciating what you have in the moment, regardless of what the future might bring."

He grinned happily. "That's just what it means to be alive."

"Y-you… what?!" The priest sputtered.

Leo went on, "Anyways, I'm getting sidetracked. I do have plenty of things I'd like to repent, but I guess if the Empyreans only forgive those who come from this world, then I suppose I'd be disqualified then." He cocked his head curiously. "Or, maybe the Empyreans could judge me only based on what I've done  _in_  this world?"

"What the hell are you going on about?!" The priest muttered helplessly.

"If that's the case," Leo continued heedlessly, "then I guess I don't actually have anything I really want to repent!" He shrugged. "I've done a bunch of things I regret in this world, sure, but it all turned out great. Actually," he put a thoughtful finger to his chin, "now that I think about it, this past year in Desolation has been absolutely fantastic for me."

He listed off his accomplishments. "Let's see… I've fallen in with the Lord of Demons and her crew, I've helped them wage war against the Shepherd himself, and I've helped to ruin the lives of countless of innocents along the way."

"N-no!" The priest squeaked in horror. "I… I thought you were different!"

Leo raised an eyebrow. "…But I am different." He pointed out. "I thought we'd established this already? I'm from a different world? Hello?" He chuckled. "Actually, funny story, the Legate Melchior actually called me an abomination; a parasite leeching on another world. Isn't that crazy?!"

"Y-you know Lord Melchior?!"

Leo shrugged. "Well. Knew. Me and my friends helped the Lord of Calamity eat him alive and feed him to a bunch of hungry gods in a bloody human sacrifice during the last scarlet night."

"…AHH!" The man screamed, shaking in terror. "Forget it!" He yelled angrily, wrenching the holy hat from his head. "I don't want to hear anymore! I quit!" He yelled, stalking out of the cathedral heatedly while giving the rest of Leo's group an extremely wide berth.

"No more of this! I'm going to go help my son with the shop! Good riddance!" With a thunderous boom, the doors to the cathedral slammed shut behind the man. His abandoned holy hat landed on the floor behind the closed door with a petulant thump.

Leo blinked. He turned to the rest of the group. "…The hell's his problem?"

The group gave him a simultaneous shrug in response.

"I think he cracked." Rokurou observed mildly with a grin.

Eizen chuckled. "Aye. Everyone has their limits. I guess Leo was just the last straw."

Eleanor just sighed. "Leo, I think your life might just be a bit too traumatizing for others to understand."

Magilou added wryly, "Not to mention his very existence opens gateways to existential crisis. Oh, the poor man." She languished. "My love!"

Velvet shot her a look. "I think you're more traumatizing than the rest of us combined, Magilou."

"Awe! How sweet!" The witch grinned toothily.

"That wasn't a compleme-Oh, forget it." Velvet quickly dropped the losing battle before it began.

Laphicet shook his head. "Come on, guys. We've gotta get back to Port Zekson before the sun goes down." He urged.

Leo nodded. "Right, kid. Let's get going so we can get started on experimenting with your powers!"

"Haha, yeah!" The malak beamed excitedly. "I can't wait!"

Eizen glared darkly at the two. "I'm warning you two right now, if you cause even a scratch on the Van Eltia's paint, I'll have the two of you scrubbing the floors for the rest of the voyage south!" He threatened evilly.

Leo and Laphicet squeaked simultaneously in fear. "Y-yes sir!" They chorused obediently, exchanging nervous glances in the face of the reaper's wrath.

Rokurou shrugged next to Velvet. "…No," he argued, "I think everyone's got their own unique trauma factor, you know?"

The therion shook her head in exasperation. "I guess you're not wrong." She shrugged.

Together, the group turned around and made their way through the gates, headed back toward the Van Eltia and onwards on their journey.

* * *

"…Alright Phi. Now, for this next one, I need you to try and focus your thoughts on this one point here."

Leo pointed to a simple improvised radiation scanner hooked up to the rest of an array of other modules on the table. "Same as last time, except now, try to suppress it. Make it as small as can be. Imagine a flow of water going through a barely opened slew gate."

Across the workbench from him, Phi nodded, his eyes scrunched in concentration.

All around them, the sounds of the calm sunset nautical ambiance reached their ears as the Van Eltia continued its course onwards towards Yesult. Crew members chattered idly as they went about their work all around the two as they worked on the deck to test Laphicet's inborn powers. It would be better to have things blow up above deck than ripping holes below, after all.

By Leo's side, Velvet furrowed her brow as she tried to make sense of Leo's measuring device which man was presently staring at.

Laphicet's frown deepened as he concentrated harder.

BEEP!

The foreign sound rang out brightly throughout the deck, signaling the successful detection of abnormal radiation amounts in the sensor's vicinity. Velvet blinked in surprise as a visible flicker of blue flame flashed briefly in the air above the sensor before puttering out quickly in the sea breeze.

"Haha!"

Leo whooped, hurriedly scratching down information attained from the various indicator lights on the module. "Nice one, Phi!" He complemented. "Alright! That's progress!"

Laphicet gasped for breath in relief, his body untensing the moment Leo's words rang out. "Whew!" He breathed. "It's so hard, even with the smallest of flames!" He complained.

Leo gave the malak a reassuring grin. "It's fine, Phi. Once I've got all the data I need to compile a complete picture of your powers, I'll be able to use that information to augment your strengths and help you better harness ambient radiation."

Velvet was utterly lost. "Mind saying that in a way I can understand?" She asked pointedly.

Leo nodded. "From what I've gotten so far, the therions and Phi harness radiation for their powers for a reason I haven't figured out yet." He explained. "That means that Phi's silver flame, and conversely his ability to seal Innominat, is directly linked to how much radiation he has in his body at the moment."

He gestured to the array of sensors and modules on the workbench. "Right now, I'm trying to figure out just how much radiation he needs for how much exerted flame. Once I get all this information, I'll be able to design a device similar to the one in my head that will gather ambient radiation and contain it."

Laphicet nodded. "Right! So, to use my powers, all I have to do is to wait until the device has charged enough and then I can channel the stored radiation into my body and use my powers however I want!"

"Is the theory, anyways." Leo shrugged. "Furthermore, we have no idea about the extent of Laphicet's powers. Since he is partially an Empyrean, we might be able to explore further powers that he doesn't even know he has!"

Velvet's brow furrowed. "But Leo, didn't you say that this world has an extremely low charging rate?" She pointed out. "That's why you had to wait around 3 years for your device to charge, right?"

The man nodded. "That's true. However." He pulled out his notebook and paged to a graph showing a massive spike in data. "What we do know is that Innominat releases untold amounts of radiation into his domain."

Understanding dawned on the woman. "…So, if we're in Innominat's domain…"

"He'll have limitless power." Leo finished with satisfaction. "Going by current experiments, if Laphicet has direct access to the radiation in Innominat's domain and channels it successfully with my help, his powers would be more than enough to seal Innominat away! In theory, of course." He added.

"Huh…!" Velvet hummed softly.

"Phi." She asked worriedly, turning to the malak. "Are you sure you can handle that much power?"

Laphicet nodded back determinedly. "I'm sure, Velvet. Leo says that when I turned Aifread back to normal, I used up all of the radiation I'd soaked up from being near Innominat all at once. I wasn't even tired when I did it, either!"

"That's right!" Velvet realized. "You didn't even blink back then."

Leo leant back on his stool and crossed his arms with a satisfied expression. "The kid's quite impressive." He noted. "From what I could tell, turning Aifread back took massive,  _massive_ amounts of radiation. Far more than what I need to jump between worlds. And he released it all in second on instinct."

He shook his head in amazement. "Part Empyrean indeed. If this goes right, we'll be able to use Innominat's own nature against him, thanks to how much radiation he emits."

His brow furrowed. "…But there's still the mystery of  _why_ Innominat emits so much damn radiation, while the other Empyreans don't."

Laphicet cocked his head. "Maybe… It's got something to do with how he's the Empyrean of Suppression?" He suggested.

"That is a possibility…" Leo trailed off uncertainly. "I just don't feel right simply just categorizing it as a simple anomaly and ignoring it." He looked off into the sunset behind them. "That's not what I was brought up to do."

Velvet was thoughtfully quiet. "…At the very least, I'm glad you're helping us, Leo." She smiled at the man gratefully. "I don't think any of us would've even begun to think about rationalizing Innominat's nature like this."

Leo grinned back. "Well, Reason isn't all bad, you know." He pointed out.

The therion rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I guess so." She conceded grudgingly.

Leo turned back to the malak across the table. "Alright, Phi. Ready to do it again?" He asked.

Laphicet nodded. "I think I've soaked in enough radiation for another one."

The man grinned. "Now you're getting it! Alright. This time, I want you to force as  _much_ power through as possible and as  _quickly_ as possible."

"Huh?" The malak blinked. "Are you sure, Leo?"

Leo waved an uncaring hand. "Nah! Of course I'm not! Just go for it, as my dad would say. No pain, no gain!"

Velvet groaned. "Why do I get a bad feeling about this…"

"We'll get out of your way, just in case." Leo grinned, tugging the therion away and leaving Laphicet sitting there alone in front of the sensor.

"If you say so…" Laphicet glanced at them hesitantly before turning his attention to the metallic sensor. He scrunched his eyes in concentration.

Leo and Velvet watched with bated breath as the malak lifted a hand.

Abruptly, the world went dark.

BANG!

Leo and Velvet cursed as they recoiled, shielding their eyes from the brilliant flash of blue as the sensor exploded in a blinding fireball. The Van Eltia trembled, her crew shouting in alarm as the deck tilted alarmingly to the side. The very next instant, the flames vanished, leaving nothing but brief, fading blue embers falling lightly down onto the charred deck.

Leo blinked in aghast. "…Shit." He swore as he took in the remains of the workbench and his precious sensors. He watched with alarm as Laphicet wavered from his seat.

"PHI!" Velvet yelled, her voice thick with worry as she charged over, catching the winded malak as he toppled backwards from his stool, fully unconscious.

"What the HELL was that?!" Eizen's furious roar preceded the vengeful reaper's stomping advance down the stairs and towards the detonation site.

Hot on the first mate's heels, Benwick yelled, "Is everyone alright?!"

"Ugh…" Laphicet moaned as he weakly lifted his eyelids, staring unseeingly up at Velvet as she cradled his form. "I don't think… that was a very good idea… Leo…" He mumbled deliriously.

As one, everyone turned to glare at the man in question.

Leo winced helplessly.

"I uh, think we might've overdone it… just a little?" He tried. "Too much power, too little fuel?"

Velvet's glare was genuinely murderous.

"…I'll get started on scrubbing the deck." Leo mumbled sheepishly, shuffling away from the rest of them.

While the others began discussing what the hell just happened behind him, Leo quietly reached into his jacket pocket and began hurriedly scribbling new data on his notebook as he walked away.

It was all starting to make sense now.

The setting sun framed the Van Eltia as it continued onwards towards the horizon.


	57. C55 - Visitors

**Chapter 55 – Visitors.**

There was a low tide tonight.

The sound of the crashing waves filled the vast shadowed cove containing the Southgand town of Yesult, resounding off the surrounding cliff faces and providing an ever-present hum in the quiet, humid night. In the distance, Leo could see the furled-up sails of the Van Eltia as it slept quietly in the docks next to a few other trader vessels, bobbing almost imperceptibly gently in the shallow moonlit waters. The man sighed blissfully, leaning back on the sloped wooden roof of the local inn.

Another day, another sleepless night for Leonex Davidson, he mused wryly. The others would just have to deal with his inevitable complaining tomorrow when they headed out to the remains of Haria to grab Kamoana's medicine. Who knows, they might even find another Nor Doll for Eizen's sister lying around.

The distant waves lulled the man into a reflective mind as he stared pensively across town, watching as the occasional torch-bearing city guard or late-night citizen trotted along the empty raised walkways below. Ever since the Elemental Empyreans had been awakened, the Lord of Calamity and company had been travelling all over Midgand, tying up loose ends and doing all they could to prepare themselves for the final battle with Innominat. And once that was over with…

Well. There wasn't any point in worrying about what was to come. He might as well enjoy what he had while he had it.

He shifted on top of the roof, the wood below him creaking softly as he did. He let out a soft sigh, his mind lazily wandering through all the memories gathering rust inside of his mind. All the worlds he'd been through… all the people he'd met. All the things he'd seen.

A cool sea-bound breeze tickled his hair on its way towards the ocean.

Despite himself, he found a content smile on his face.

He might've been a sinner with much to repent… but that didn't stop him from living. =From taking part in a stupid comedy show with Magilou. From being incessantly bullied by Rokurou and Eizen for his alcohol intolerance. From teasing a gullible Eleanor at every possible opportunity.

From being alive, as Laphicet and Velvet might say.

The waves continued to crash, far in the distance.

Leo blinked as he registered the sound of the inn door opening, breaking the hypnotic rhythm of the waves. He sat up curiously, wondering who in the world would be as weird as him and be up at around 2 in the morning.

His mouth twitched into a grin as he recognized the people walking out of inn.

"Hark!" He yelled out suddenly. "When the end times come, a talking Pengyon will declare judgement upon the sinful." He announced sinisterly into the air, causing the heads of the group below to turn together in alarm, raising their weapons. "Repent for your misdeeds, sinners! Fear the wrath of the mighty flightless Pengyon!" He declared.

Velvet rolled her eyes when she registered Leo's features in the moonlight. "Come on." She beckoned lightly. "We're going for a walk."

"Yep!" Magilou added happily. "For no reason whatsoever!"

Leo smirked as he slid down the roof, gingerly making his way down to the platform the group was stood on. "Sure." He shrugged. "Not like I was getting any sleeping done anyways."

Laphicet grinned. "You're curious about what the innkeeper's daughter said too, aren't you Leo." He accused.

The man waved his hand arrogantly as he fell into step besides the malak. "Pfft! Of course I'm not! Talking Pengyons?! I've seen plenty of stranger things! Talking Pengyons are  _boring_  in comparison." He announced into the night.

"Huh." Eleanor spoke up. "So, what stranger things have you seen then, Leo?"

"I'm curious as well." Eizen agreed. "You haven't told us much about the other places you've been, or what sort of civilizations you've come across."

Magilou's eyes shined greedily in the moonlight. "Ooh! Yes! Give us a taste of the sheer wonder of the other dimensions."

Leo grinned wryly. "I'm not so sure you'd believe them even if I did tell you."

"Nonsense!" Magilou denied. "Coming from someone as strange of a deviant as you, I'd believe anything, honest!"

The man hummed, rubbing his chin thoughtfully as he dug into his memories. "Well, I've seen far,  _far_ more talented witches than you, for one." He recounted wryly.

"LIES!" Magilou instantly shrieked. "I demand proof! At least three reference testimonies and one witch-portfolio complete with a fully filled out 2-page witch-resume!"

Velvet rolled her eyes. "So much for that."

Leo grinned. "So it would seem."

The group fell into silence, the distant song of the waves complementing the rough chorus of their boots on wood as they made their way through the empty town of Yesult. High up above, the moon shone through the colorful tarps occasionally blocking the group's view of the sky as they proceeded.

Quietly, Leo made his way up the child in the group.

"Hey, Laphicet." He prompted. "You're still feeling fine, right?" He asked, worry in his eyes.

The malak nodded at length. " _Yes_ , Leo. I'm fine. Really!" He stressed. "I think Velvet and Eleanor have made sure of that at this point."

Leo chuckled, backing off from the subject. "Alright, kid. I figured you'd be alright…" He looked away awkwardly. "I'm still sorry for being so rash with my experiments and pushing you so far you know that, right?"

Laphicet just shook his head, his blonde hair glinting in the moonlight. "It's  _fine_ , Leo. Really!" He smiled genuinely. "If anything, I think you've shown me just how powerful I could potentially be. Enough to protect Velvet from Innominat at the very least!"

Leo grinned. "That's good, kid." He patted the malak lightly. "You've got a good heart, you know that?"

His eyes turned pensive. "If only you were Innominat." He muttered thoughtfully. "This world would be so much better."

Laphicet's eyes were wide. "If I were Innominat…!" He mumbled almost uncomprehendingly. "So, that would mean I would have so much power…"

Leo nodded, a thoughtful look on his face. "You'd be a god. Through and through." He muttered.

"Laphicet." He turned to the malak seriously. "Your powers are stupid strong; you know that, right?"

Laphicet nodded hesitantly. "Eleanor's only just recently gotten a handle on channeling my powers. She says I'm really difficult to manage because of how strong I am."

"Right." Leo agreed. "That's because you're just not any malak. You're part god, Laphicet." He reminded him.

"…Never let that power go to your head, alright?"

"Never." Laphicet agreed sternly. "The only reason I want you to help me get stronger is so that I can help protect those I care about. That's all."

He held up a single protective fist. "I'm nothing like Innominat." He affirmed resolutely.

Leo chuckled softly in response. "Yeah. I'd figured I wouldn't have a problem with you in that respect." His eyes turned to the therion walking ahead of them.

"You've grown into a fine young man." He said genuinely. "Despite it all. No, because of it all. I'm proud of you, Phi."

"Thanks, Leo." The malak smiled happily. "I'm glad you think so."

The man sighed, stretching his arms and glancing up at the sky as they walked. "Anytime, kid." He smiled softly. "Anytime."

The stars watched from high above as the group made their way in silence through the town and down the stairs to the beach, the roaring of the waves becoming much louder as it surrounded them.

Rokurou blinked. "Hey look!" He abruptly announced, pointing over by a copse of tropical trees on the beach. "There's a stray Pengyon."

Velvet's eyes narrowed. "Think it might be the talking one?"

"Only one way to find out." Leo shrugged, stepping off the stairs and onto the beach, his boots kicking up sand as he trotted forward. "Let's go say hello."

Magilou grinned. "And we'll see if it says hello back!"

The group trotted forward over to the brightly-colored Pengyon resting in the shadows of the trees and staring out into ocean seemingly pensively.

"…Hello?" Laphicet piped up, despite feeling rather silly at addressing a Pengyon.

The Pengyon blinked, staring at the intruders.

"Oh. Good evening. Lovely weather isn't it?" The Pengyon commented.

The group just stared.

Leo rubbed his eyes. "The fuck?"

"It… it really talked!" Laphicet exclaimed with wide eyes.

"I can't believe it!" Eleanor shook her head in disbelief. "Something I eat can talk!?"

"H-huh?!"

The stout little Pengyon's marble eyes were wide. "Wait! Do… you guys eat us Pengyons too?!" He exclaimed.

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "Why does it matter?" She asked.

"Please, answer my question." The Pengyon begged. "It's very important."

Eleanor nodded shamefully. "I'm sorry but… Yes." She admitted sadly to the very animal she had eaten. "Yes… I eat them."

Velvet shrugged, crossing her arms. "And I'll happily devour most anything if I have to." She added.

The rolling of the waves filled the silence as the Pengyon gathered its wits.

"Well then…" the Pengyon spoke weakly, "I suppose you people are just like the others who came here before."

The group blinked.

"I can't let you keep doing that!" The animal declared startlingly fiercely.

"Oh?" Magilou leaned in wryly. "And what's a cutesy little pengyon like you plan on doing about us big, bad humans?" She drawled.

"Haaaaaaah!"

Squeak, squeak, squeak.

POOF!

Everyone stared in astonishment as in the place of the blue pengyon, there stood an actual man with gauntlets in hand and raised fists.

"Wahh!" Magilou cried in alarm. "He changed into a human!"

"…I take it back." Leo muttered as he absently reached for his rifle behind his shoulder. "This is officially the strangest thing I've ever seen."

"What the hell are you?!" Velvet yelled as the man charged. The group instantly scattered into their familiar battle formation, weapons instinctively at the ready.

"I'm sorry for deceiving you all…" the strange man apologized as his fists flew towards the woman. "But I can't let you hurt anymore Pengyons!" He declared heatedly, attacking with ironclad boots and fists.

Velvet retaliated promptly, leaping inhumanly high into the air and rushing back down with her own whirlwind kicks and sword slashes.

"Whoa!" The man let out instinctively, blocking hard and leaping backwards on the defensive as Velvet maintained her offensive rhythm. Sand rained everywhere as the two brawled together on the seashore.

Leo threw Eizen a glance. "You think pengyon skin is thicker than human skin?"

Eizen huffed, waving his arms and casting a warding arte on Velvet as she continued her attack. "To my knowledge, aye. But also, according to my knowledge, pengyons can't turn into humans." He shook his head in befuddlement.

Rokurou shot them a grin as he watched the two fight. "If even the reaper is confused, it's gotta be pretty damn strange."

Laphicet cocked his head in confusion, uncertainly fiddling with his papers. "…Should we be helping?" He asked the rest of the group.

Magilou shrugged. "Whoever or whatever this pengyon dude is, he doesn't seem to be that great at protecting his fellow pengyons." She smirked, pointing a finger to her temple. "We should ask Velvet what he tastes like when she eats him. Pengyon? Or human?"

Leo rolled his eyes, cocking his rifle and raising it, the barrel glinting in the moonlight. "I'd prefer if she didn't." He opined, lining up the sights. "I wanna have a chat with that guy. Something just feels… off about him."

"Oh gee. I wonder what it is?!" Magilou quipped.

Leo sighed. "Besides the whole turning-into-a-human thing, obviously." He clarified.

Meanwhile, across the beach, Velvet pressed her attack savagely against her opponent. With a squelch, her massive daemon claw burst out from her left arm, slashing angrily through the air.

"What the-?!" The man backpedaled in alarm, barely managing to save himself from being clawed in the face by the unexpected appendage. He hurriedly launched himself back forward, slashing his boots and fists through the air and forcing Velvet to dodge, giving her no opportunity to use her claw again.

"Velvet! Crossfire right!"

"Do it!"

"Huh?" The man blinked in confusion as his opponent suddenly launched herself out of range of his fists.

CRACK!

"Agh!" The man cried as the rubber bullet landed on his shoulder, spinning with the impact and groaning with pain. "Was that a… gun?!"

Velvet took the opportunity and spun around, her daemon claw held out high.

"HEAVEN'S CLAW!" She roared, slamming the claw into the beach palm-up and thrusting upwards, sending the man flying into the air along with a cloud of sand.

The man slammed back down onto the ground with a groan. "This power is strong…" He coughed sand out of his mouth. "Too strong…"

POOF!

"Gah…" The group blinked once more as the man disappeared on the spot, to be replaced with the familiar form of the pengyon flapping helplessly in the air. "I… I turned back into a pengyon…" It moaned.

"…No matter! This isn't over!" The pengyon declared heatedly, flapping his useless wings and preparing to charge the woman once more.

"Wait."

Laphicet spoke up urgently, trotting up to Velvet as she dispelled her claw, still on her guard. "Why are you so intent on fighting us when you're outnumbered?" He asked urgently.

"I have to protect my fellow pengyons from the likes of poachers like you!" The pengyon roared defiantly, flapping his wings angrily.

Velvet's body untensed in confusion. "Poachers?" She asked.

Trotting over, Leo spoke up. "We're not poachers, man." He assured. "We just heard rumors of a talking pengyon and came down here to see."

The pengyon blinked. "…Really? But then… why did you guys say you eat pengyons?" He asked in confusion.

Velvet deadpanned. Eleanor facepalmed in mortification.

Rokurou scratched his head sheepishly with a grin. "Well… I guess we should've explained things more clearly. Sorry."

Leo waved a hand. "Velvet here eats just about anything." He explained lightly. "…Except my cooking, that is."

Velvet glared at him. " _Nobody_ can eat your cooking, Leo." She pointed out.

"Hey! I can!" Leo sputtered in defense.

"Exactly. Like I said, nobody." Velvet shot back wryly.

"…Ouch."

Velvet shook her head, turning back to the pengyon staring inquisitively at the group. "Anyways, I'm… sorry about the confusion." She uttered sheepishly.

"And as for me," Eleanor spoke up, "the only pengyon I ever eat is what I buy properly at the market." She nodded primly.

"We're not good people," Eizen explained, "but we're not  _those_  kinds of villains, either."

"Oh…" The pengyon looked sheepish. "Well… in that case, I should apologize as well for jumping to conclusions and picking a fight. Sorry about that." He shook his head, looking to explain himself. "I just ran into some pengyon poachers earlier, and I'm afraid I'm a little on edge right now." He explained.

"Ahah." Magilou concluded. "Those must be the other people who've spotted you here. They're all sick in bed just from the shock of meeting you." She observed wryly, "Small fries like them, I bet they'll think twice before they try to poach another animal."

Velvet crossed her arms, still uncertain. "So… what are you then? Some special representative of pengyon-kind?"

"No." The pengyon explained simply. "I'm Jude Mathis." He shook his feathers. "I'm a medical student from Rieze Maxia."

"A… medical student? From Rieze Maxia?" Laphicet parroted.

"It's in a different world from yours." The pengyon named Jude explained.

Leo blinked. "… _What_?!" He exclaimed.

The rest of the group blinked in astonishment, glancing at Leo in surprise.

"A different world?!" Laphicet repeated in shock. "That's just like Leo!"

Magilou gasped. "Gasp! The plot thickens!" She declared.

Velvet gave Leo an incredulous look. "This guy isn't from your world, is he?" She asked.

"Wait, what?" The pengyon named Jude flapped his wings anxiously as he zeroed in on the man in question. "You're from another world too?!"

Leo blinked, meeting Velvet's gaze. "Hell if I know what a 'Rieze Maxia' is." He shook his head. "And besides. You don't see me spontaneously bursting into pengyon form now do you?"

The pengyon in question frantically flapped his wings. "Please!" He pleaded. "You have to tell me how you got here! I still need to find my way back!"

Leo shook his head. "Sorry man, or pengyon, or whatever you are. The only way I can help you is by getting you more lost than you already are." He shrugged helplessly. "I've been trying to get back to my own home word for almost a decade now myself."

The pengyon wilted in depression.

"That… doesn't bode well." He mumbled. He shook his head, looking up to Leo. "And actually, I'm a human just like you, but…" He sighed. "Somehow, I was flung into this dimension, and when I came to, I looked like this."

Velvet exchanged incredulous looks with Leo.

"So, basically," Magilou summarized with an index finger to the temple, "you're a human from another world, but when you came here, it made you turn into a pengyon?" She finished off inquisitively.

"That's quite the tale." Rokurou commented as he crossed his arms. "…not too far off from what we've already seen, though."

"So, what? You have absolutely no idea what brought you to this world?" Leo asked incredulously.

"None at all." Jude shook his head. "However, when I was lost and confused, the pengyons here were kind to me, and took me in as their own." His eyes were soft. "I wanted to repay the favor to them since they've done so much for me."

Eleanor summarized, "So you've been protecting them from any poachers who come."

Magilou hummed. "You know, that doesn't sound quite far off from what Leo did." She pointed out wryly.

"I guess." Leo rolled his eyes. "Besides the whole turning-into-a-pengyon thing, obviously." He added.

Velvet cocked her head. "But… don't you have bigger things to worry about right now?" She asked pointedly, shifting on her feet. "Looks to me like you're too soft-hearted."

Leo glared at the woman. "Hey! The hell did you just call-oh, you're not talking to me…" He trailed off sheepishly.

The pengyon shrugged helplessly in response to the therion. "I get that a lot."

Velvet sighed, shifting on the battle-trodden beach. "Well, we've heard your story." She shrugged. "But… it doesn't sound like there's anything we can really do for you."

Leo nodded quietly, deep in thought.

"Don't worry about me." The pengyon shook his head. "I'll figure out how to get home on my own… one way or another." He shifted. "The problem is that a friend of mine got sent to this world with me… but I haven't been able to find her. My hunch is that she's also turned into a pengyon." He cocked his head. "You all haven't heard of any other talking pengyons, have you?" He asked.

"Can't say I have." Velvet shook her head. "Sorry."

"Oh… okay." Jude let out meekly.

Eizen spoke up. "What kind of person is this friend of yours? Maybe we'll run into her later." He suggested.

"Her name is Milla." Jude explained. "She has pretty red eyes and long golden hair. She carries herself with dignity and possesses a commanding presence." He paused. "Hmm… What else… oh!" He nodded. "One of her quirks is that whenever she sees something tasty… she drools."

Laphicet rested his cheek on his fist. "That's… an interesting quirk." He commented.

Leo's eye twitched. "I guess you could call it a quirk?" He tried.

Rokurou rubbed his chin in thought. "You mean, she actually drools?" He asked.

"Also," Jude continued, "she's known as the 'Lord of Spirits' because she's accompanied by four Summon Spirits with command over the elements."

"Oooooh, 'Lord of Spirits.'" Magilou grinned. "How royal-sounding! Much better than the Lord of Calamity!" She shot a wry grin over her shoulder.

Eizen nodded. "Alright, got it. If we hear anything, we'll let you know."

Eleanor urged, "It may be hard, but try to keep your spirits up, Jude!"

"Thank you all so much!" The pengyon flapped his wings. "I hope you guys get a lead on Milla!"

Velvet crossed her arms. "You care about her even more than yourself." She observed quietly.

"Er… well, how do I put it…" Jude searched for the correct words. "…She's just… a really special person to me, I guess."

"Yep." Magilou chirped. "Definitely starting to sound like Leo." She observed wryly.

"Do I look like I have feathers?!"

Leo sighed, turning to the pengyon while slinging his rifle behind himself. "Jude, if you want," he proposed, "I can do a few tests on you and try to find out how exactly you ended up here."

Jude blinked. "You can do that?" He asked tentatively.

Eleanor nodded. "Leo's a bit of an expert on how the whole different world business." She smiled. "He revealed his secret to us a few months ago and even  _now_  I can't understand half of what he says when it comes to this stuff."

Laphicet laughed. "It's real confusing alright, but Leo knows what he's talking about!" He turned to the pengyon supportively. "He's really good at figuring stuff out, Jude. I help out with his experiments all the time!"

Leo grinned happily, scratching the back of his neck bashfully. "Awe, you guys are gunna make me blush."

Eizen scoffed. "As long as you don't mind blowing up and leaving scorch marks all over the deck, you should be fine." He muttered darkly.

"B-blowing up?!" Jude stammered.

Rokurou chuckled, patting the sour first mate heartily on the back. "Don't worry about it." He suggested. "Leo's got a  _relatively_  good track record. He'll do everything he can to try and get you home."

"Right!" Magilou agreed sagely. "Ignoring the occasional ship-sinking catastrophe, of course."

"Ignore them." Leo advised, rolling his eyes.

"Anyways, we have a ship in the harbor right now that has a bunch of measuring devices in my cabin." He pointed over at the nearby port of Yesult sitting quietly in the night. "If you want, we can take some measurements and try to see how exactly it was you managed to slip dimensions. Won't take more than half an hour." He promised.

"…Alright." Jude decided, nodding his head. "I suppose I should take anything I can get at the moment. Lead the way." He pattered up to the man.

"Heh." Magilou grinned wryly. "You might wanna rethink that declaration of yours, Eizen. I think us villains just branched out into the field of animal testing."

"Hmph." Eizen grunted. "As long as it's consensual, I don't mind."

"…And that sums up his opinion on pretty much everything." Velvet sighed.

The group watched together as Leo and Jude trotted off into the night, headed to the Van Eltia.

"…Hey… guys?" Eleanor spoke up. "I'm not going to wake up tomorrow morning and realize that all of this was a dream… right?"

Velvet shook her head in disbelief. "If it's any consolation, there are worse dreams out there."

Rokurou chuckled. "I'm sure there are." He agreed. "Come on. There's still plenty of time to rest before heading out tomorrow."

Eleanor sighed. "I guess we'll just have to endure Leo's sleepy complaining tomorrow."

Eizen grunted. "Aye. That's a fact."

Magilou shrugged. "What a night, folks."

Together, the group made their way back through the quiet town towards their inn.

* * *

Knock. Knock. Knock.

"Coming!" Leo called over as he stood up, abandoning his current work on the table in favor of opening the door to his small cabin on the Van Eltia. "Hey, Phi." He greeted the malak standing in the hallway. "Great timing. It's finished!"

Laphicet cocked his head. "What is?"

Leo beckoned him inside, crossing the cabin to reach inside his bag. "Here!" He grinningly pulled out a bright metallic object from inside his bag and offered it to the malak.

Laphicet blinked strangely. "A… ring?"

There was indeed a strange purple-hued metallic piece of jewelry laying on the man's open palm, numerous strange markings and machined logic pathways engraved onto its surface.

Leo nodded. "This right here is the result of all our hard work." His eyes held a distinct pride as he eyed the product of countless hours of experimenting. "Jude had a few foreign materials he was willing to give me in exchange for some supplies that night." He rolled his eyes. "…Once we had somehow managed to turn him back into a human for a bit, that is."

"Anyways, it made my job a lot easier." He handed the ring to the malak. "So, here you go!" He grinned.

Laphicet's eyes were wide. "This is… incredible, Leo!" He exclaimed, gingerly taking the ring and examining it closely. "So, this will gather and store radiation?"

Leo nodded. "The capacity is similar to how much my own device holds, give or take a few degrees. It can be used as a storage device for whenever you need power, gathering ambient radiation as you go about your business, or it can also be used as a conduit to channel Innominat's radiation into yourself if inside his domain."

"That's… that's amazing, Leo!" The malak slipped the ring onto his left index finger. He paused. "Uh… how do I… use it?" Laphicet cocked his head in confusion.

"…Er, yeah. About that." Leo rubbed his head sheepishly. "I have no idea if you'll be able to use it." He shrugged helplessly. "All I can tell you is to try your best on your own time to help siphon the pool of radiation inside. As I myself don't have the ability to channel radiation, I can't really tell you. All I can promise is that the conduit ring works purely in theory."

Laphicet chuckled. "Don't worry about it, Leo! Thanks! I'm sure I'll find a way to access it eventually."

Leo grinned back at the malak. "I'm sure you will." He ruffled the kid's hair. "Good luck."

He blinked. "Oh yeah. What did you come here for in the first place?"

Blinking, Laphicet abruptly remembered his original purpose. "Oh! Eizen got word from a Bloodwing about a golden pengyon that defeated a praetor with the four elements near the Figal Icecaps. They're calling it Goldipen." He explained. "We think it might be Milla. Eizen's already sent out a letter to Jude back in Yesult."

Leo shook his head. "Christ. Never a dull moment nowadays, huh?" He shifted on his feet. "I suppose we're headed to Hellawes after Titania then, huh?"

Laphicet nodded. "Yep!"

"Well, thanks for the heads up, kid." Leo said, sliding himself back into his chair. "And good luck with the ring. I hope it works!"

"I'm sure I can figure it out eventually." Laphicet assured as he made his way out the door. "Oh, and Eleanor's cooking tonight!" He remembered. "She wants to know how you want your steak!"

"Gosh, I know the woman for three years and she still doesn't know how I like my steak." Leo languished dramatically. "Tell her I like it rare!"

"Will do. See you, Leo." Laphicet grinned as he closed the door.

Leo sighed, leaning back in his chair in the once again silent cabin. After a moment of contemplation, the man turned back to his work on his table. His eyes fell on a particular piece of parchment describing a certain set of data.

The levels of radiation in Laphicet, Velvet, Kamoana, Medissa, and Jude.

His eyes narrowed.

Once more, the man twirled his pencil in between his fingers as he went back to writing his observations by himself. Nobody ever said science was easy, after all.

* * *

Waves crashed against the frozen cliffs of the Figal Icecaps, sending salt water flying up high into the frigid air to clash with the falling snow. Resting in its eternal state of atrophy, a monument to the past, the wreck of an Abbey Praetor ship rotted quietly away on its position being eternally pierced by the sharp jagged rocks below.

"So, lemme get this straight," Leo spoke conversationally as the group trotted in the direction of the wreck alongside the shore, "The only people you had in terms of crew was a daemon swordsman and a strange cuckoo witch, both of whom you'd only met about an hour beforehand and both of whom had next to no sailing experience."

By his side, Velvet shrugged. "I had to get off that island somehow."

Rokurou scratched his head sheepishly. "Hey, in my defense, there was a fierce storm out that night and I could barely see two inches in front of my face, let alone in front of the ship's bow."

"Hey! Who're you calling cuckoo?!" Magilou griped.

Ignoring the witch, Leo exchanged a glance with Hawk trotting alongside him by his feet. "Well, I guess that explains that mystery." He observed wryly.

Hawk whined back in agreement.

"Still." He lifted his gaze to observe the wreck they were approaching. He mused contemplatively, "To think of everything that's changed ever since then."

"Right." Magilou grinned. "For one, we've learned that Leo's afraid of spiders!"

"Will you stop bringing that up?!"

Up ahead, Eleanor abruptly stopped in her tracks. "Look!" She yelled, pointing over to the side towards a copse of frozen trees. "Red eyes, golden coat… it's Goldipen, all right!" She declared.

The rest of the group turned to watch as a strikingly bright-coated pengyon waddled out from under the trees, giving the group a strange look.

Laphicet blinked. "And she's even got that… quirk." He observed.

Velvet held out a hand of warning. "Be careful." She muttered. "If what we heard is true, she can use those Four Great Spirits in battle."

Leo blinked. "Is she… drooling?"

"Does that mean she thinks we look… tasty?!" Eleanor gasped.

Magilou threw her arms up in shock.

Velvet's body tensed. "Does that mean she's a man-eating pengyon?!"

"W-wait! Don't fight!"

Everyone blinked as a familiar blue-hued pengyon flung himself in between the group and the golden pengyon.

Laphicet blinked. "Hey, it's Jude!"

"N-no matter how much Milla loves to eat, she'd never attack a person without good reason!" Jude told them heatedly, turning around to the other pengyon. He stared. "…Wait… this pengyon isn't… Milla…!"

Fwump.

The group watched as Jude abruptly flopped backwards, lying winded on the snow. Leo piped up worriedly, "Jude? You alright, man?"

The pengyon groaned. "When I got your message… I… ran all the way here… without stopping to eat or drink." He admitted sheepishly, heaving in exhaustion.

Leo facepalmed. "…Magilou, I'm not  _that_ idiotic, am I?" He asked dryly.

The witch opened her mouth.

"Don't answer that." Leo interrupted upon momentary reconsideration.

The witch pouted bitterly at being denied.

"But… if that pengyon's not Milla…" Laphicet trailed off in surprise as another form stepped out from behind the trees.

"That's enough."

The group turned to meet the newcomer. A tall woman with red eyes and strikingly long golden hair.

Milla opened her eyes angrily. "When will you people learn to leave this pengyon alone?!" She demanded furiously. "Hunting for food I could understand, but I won't allow you to take this creature's life on some flimsy notion of bad omens!"

A strange, otherworldly sword sang as it was pulled from its sheath.

"If you want the pengyons, you'll have to fight me first!" The woman declared, charging forward with her sword held up high.

"Oh, for crying out loud!" Leo cursed as the group automatically sprang into battle and met the woman's charge. "Why does everyone keep assuming we're horrible people?!" He yelled angrily.

"Gee, I wonder why?" Magilou asked, sending a rain of thunder to harry the incoming foe.

"Who the hell are you?!" Velvet yelled as she intercepted the woman's dodge with her blade, defiant metal clashing and bouncing off each other in furious swings as the two women fought.

The woman spun around in a brilliant wheel and slashed at the therion, forcing her to leap backwards in a dodge. "I'm Milla Maxwell." The Lord of Spirits declared. "And I'm the Protector of Pengyons!"

A massive boom resounded as Laphicet and Eizen casted two eruption artes simultaneously, forcing both Velvet and Milla to disengage.

"Well that's just great! Why the hell are you fighting us, then?!" Leo yelled over the roaring artes. He raised his rifle, a rubber bullet in the chamber and took aim as Rokurou clashed blades with the stranger.

CRACK!

CRACK!

As if on instinct, Milla dodged the bullets with impressive agility, easily keeping up pace with the fight while avoiding the rubber rounds.

"Is that it?!" She taunted aggressively, charging forward and pressing her attack as Velvet joined Rokurou's assault, dancing between the blades while attempting her own sword strikes.

The clanging of metal filled the air, melting with the violent crashing of the ocean waves in the background.

With a cry, Milla slashed viciously at Rokurou, dealing a grazing blow and forcing the man to give ground with a groan of pain. Eleanor rushed forward to heal the man as he backed off.

Velvet instantly picked up the slack, swinging her iron boot around and forcing the woman to leap backwards. The therion didn't let up, rushing forward with her sword singing through the air.

The two women met once more in their duel as the rest of the group watched.

With a huff, Milla leapt backwards, putting some space in-between her and her enemy. "You're strong." She observed mildly, adjusting her grip on her own weapon. "You know your way around a sword."

"As do you." Velvet pointed out lightly. She adjusted her stance, untensing her body and putting a hand on her hip. "I can see that Jude wasn't exaggerating when he called you the Lord of Spirits."

"…Jude?!" Milla's eyes were wide.

Leo grunted, absently reloading his rifle as he strode up to the two. "If we're all done playing around by now, let's put the weapons away and talk normally,  _please_?" He pleaded. "My whole body still hurts from the ass-whupping that Phoenix prick gave me back in Titania." He groaned.

Velvet gave an amused huff. "I think we're all still a bit sore from that particular fight." She pointed out wryly.

Milla's voice was urgent as she sheathed her sword, "Do you two know Jude?!" She asked, her gaze dancing between Velvet and Leo. "I've been looking all over for him!"

Leo glanced over to the side, crossing his arms. "He's right there." He stated simply, nodding at the two pengyons watching the scene.

The blue pengyon waddled quietly up to the woman, looking even more ridiculous given the height difference.

"…Jude!"

Everyone blinked as the woman broke out into a brilliant, thankful smile, kneeling down the pengyon's level. "Thank goodness! I'm so glad you're safe!"

"Milla… you… can tell it's me?" Jude's voice was astonished as he cocked his feathered head.

The golden-haired woman smiled earnestly. "Of course, I can." She assured as if were obvious.

"You're a lot smaller on the outside, but you're still you on the inside."

"Haha." The pengyon gave an honest, relieved chuckle. "Thanks, Milla." He returned warmly. He sighed, slumping forward. "That being said, I haven't exactly had an easy time in this form…"

Milla hummed, straightening back up. "…Yes, I can see how it might have given you some trouble." She observed mildly. "Leia and Elize would probably be worried sick, and Alvin would tease you mercilessly."

Jude was thoughtful. "I think there's a way I can change back… when I fought these guys before, and when that man over there was experimenting on me, I was somehow able to do it…"

Milla's eye twitched. "E… experimenting?!" Her eyes narrowed. "…Looks like they really are a bunch of no-good pengyon abusers!" She yelled angrily, her body tensing once more.

Leo facepalmed. "Damnit, Jude, why the hell did you have to say it like that?!" He groaned.

He met the woman's eyes, stepping earnestly forward. "Listen. I'm from a different world too. I offered to take some readings of Jude's body to see if there was any way I could help you guys return to your own world."

"You're from a different world as well?!" Milla's eyes were wide.

The pengyon flapped his wings earnestly. "That's right!" Jude assuaged his friend. "This man knows all about the way the worlds work. Apparently, he's been travelling through them for a long time, and has been one for a few years."

"Oh…" The woman soaked in the new information accordingly. "…Well? How did the readings turn out, then?"

Eleanor blinked. "Oh! That's right!" She turned to the man. "Leo, you never did tell us how the readings went after that night." She pointed out.

Velvet sighed, waving a hand. "Probably because the moron fell asleep at his table the moment he finished." She shrugged. "He probably forgot all about it up until now." She conjectured.

Eizen huffed. "That does seem to be the most likely scenario." He observed dryly.

Leo glared at the lot of them. "I can hear you, you know."

Shaking his head, the man turned back to address the otherworldly visitors. "Anyways, as far as the readings went…" He shrugged. "Well, they were a complete and utter bust, as far as I can tell."

"How so?" Jude cocked his head.

Leo explained, "You're utterly and completely normal, Jude."

Rokurou coughed meaningfully behind his back.

Leo rolled his eyes. "Well, specifically in terms of how much radiation you have in your body that is." He frowned, troubled. "…It's one hundred percent normal, on par with this world's background radiation constant."

Eleanor sighed, shifting on her feet. "Leo, you know we can't understand that." She pointed out in exasperation.

The man waved his hand. "Right, well, in layman's terms…" He shrugged helplessly. "I have no idea how to help you guys. Sorry." He sighed. "To my knowledge, only one thing can help a person go between worlds… and that's radiation."

He scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. "The fact that you two are here and utterly untouched by excess radiation totally and completely breaks that notion."

Velvet shifted with the revelation. "So… what? There's some other substance out there that acts the same as your radiation?"

Leo just shrugged helplessly.

"…Hell if I know." He sighed dejectedly.

The waves crashed in the background.

Laphicet tugged at his sleeve brightly. "Don't worry about it Leo. I'm sure you'll figure it out eventually." He assured.

Magilou grinned happily. "Or you'll never figure it out, and you'll die with oh, so many heavy regrets!"

"Could you  _not_  say that?" Eleanor glared.

"…Well," Milla's face softened. "Nevertheless, I'm thankful for your help, all of you. And I'm sorry," She added, "I didn't mean to go jumping to the wrong conclusions about you."

Leo sighed. "Everyone does. Don't worry about it."

"Everyone," Jude spoke up, "thank you all so much for reaching out to me."

Eizen grinned. "No need to thank us." He assured. "We just did the same as anybody would."

"And Leo," the pengyon turned to address the man, "thank you for trying to help as well, regardless of how it turned out."

Leo shrugged. "What Eizen said." He waved off with a grin.

Laphicet smiled. "I'm glad you found your friend!" He commented happily.

"However," Velvet observed seriously, "it would seem that both of you are still stuck here."

Milla nodded her head in acknowledgement. "It's fine." She assured. "The two of us will figure something out." She looked down fondly at the pengyon at her side. "We'll get Jude back to his normal self and find our way back home to Rieze Maxia."

Jude nodded quietly. "Yeah."

"Good luck." Leo encouraged softly. "Here's hoping I'll find my own way back home as well…"

The two travelers nodded, meeting Leo's eyes.

"SQUAWK!"

Milla blinked, looking down at the golden pengyon that had waddled up to the two of them. "Oh, do you want to come along, too?" She cooed.

Jude cocked his head. "You know this pengyon?"

"Yeah." Milla nodded her head contemplatively. "For some reason… I've taken quite a liking to him." She crossed her arms. "Something about him just feels… familiar." She trailed off.

"Heh…" Jude chuckled lightly. "I suppose so."

The creaking of the shipwreck in the background continued audibly over the howl of the wind as the three strange individuals gathered their bearings. The group watched as they left, walking off into the frozen tundra. Jude the Pengyon raised a single flipper in farewell before following the other two off into the distance.

"…There they go." Rokurou observed. "Is it really okay to let them leave?"

Leo sighed, shifting on his feet. "Something tells me that those two are just better off on their own." He muttered.

The man sighed quietly, gazing off absently at the wreckage of the Abbey ship along the coast. A relic of a different time.

"Jude's wrong, you know that?" He spoke to nobody in particular.

Eizen shifted. "And how do you figure that?"

Absently, Leo knelt down and rubbed Hawk's fur. "I really have no clue about how the worlds work." He stared off quietly.

"No clue whatsoever."

In the distance, the waves of a high tide continued to roar.


	58. C56 - Meddle

**Chapter 56 – Meddle.**

Stonebury was quiet. Every time Velvet found herself here, she found herself feeling surprisingly calmer than she ever did anywhere else.

There was something just so familiar about all of this. A quiet, isolated town of closely-knit villagers, all finding their way alongside one another against the dangers of the wild frontier. A promise of arduous trials, and the peace that would follow.

A quiet breeze rustled the trees around her and tickled the ordered berry bushes below. She relaxed, idly gazing around from her comfortable perch on top of an elevated, shadowed tree branch on the northern edge of the farming settlement. The group had been spread out throughout the town ever since they had arrived an hour ago.

Across the walled valley, the therion used her acute vision to spot Eizen and Rokurou, both of whom were chatting seriously with a wizened old man. Likely following up on that pervious conversation on aging wines that they'd dragged on for hours last time. She rolled her eyes fondly. One-track minds, the both of them. They were completely alike. Even if they would never acknowledge that fact out loud.

On the other side of the golden sunset-washed town, Laphicet and Eleanor could be seen idly strolling through the various market stalls. Buying groceries for tonight's meal, no doubt. Velvet smiled softly. It was Phi's turn once again, and he was truly dedicated towards mastering the art of meatball stew.

She moved her head slightly and gazed around, searching for that little annoying shade of pink that signaled the resident witch's presence. She abruptly found the witch perched lightly on top of one of the taller wall segments of town, heedless of the long drop. She'd most likely used her guardians to get herself up there.

The witch had been abnormally quiet when they'd arrived in town. Majelu and Valta's conflict had obviously struck a direct chord inside of her. Velvet was genuinely worried about how the witch was taking it.

She abruptly noticed the witch wasn't alone. Bienfu was there, as always, his dinky little hat barely noticeable as he wobbled on one of the wooden trunks making up the wall.

She shook her head fondly. She should've known. Magilou would always do what Magilou did best. And Bienfu would be there right alongside her. Like always, the failed shepherd's shadow would push through like always in order to see what she thought was interesting. That was just who she was…

"Are you sure?!"

Velvet abruptly registered the vaguely familiar feminine voice. She turned her gaze downwards, towards the fields below her shadowed perch. She watched as her group's seventh member put an assuring hand on the young woman's shoulder, giving it a friendly squeeze.

"Yes." Leo promised, shaking his head sadly. "I haven't seen Amy, nor have I heard from her."

The woman, Zara, the trader's daughter, Velvet abruptly remembered, sighed quietly. From the therion's position it was obvious she wasn't happy with the news.

"…I figured." Zara muttered disdainfully. "When my dad found that note…" She trailed off sadly.

A choked sob reached Velvet's ears.

"…He… he knew." Zara wrenched at her eyes furiously. "He knew she would never be coming back." She sobbed. "I just wish… I just wish I knew why!" She ground out.

Velvet watched as Leo nodded slowly, a pained look in his eyes. He opened his mouth and paused, before carefully finding his voice.

"…Look. Zara." He steadied the teen in front of him. "We all take different paths in life." Leo muttered quietly, releasing his hands. "Sometimes our paths take us away from those we want to walk alongside." He shook his head softly. "That's just the nature of the world."

A cold night gust blew, rustling the leaves around them.

Zara sniffed softly, nodding slowly. "I think I understand." She met the man's gaze with drier eyes. "Thanks, Leo. You've already done so much for me and my dad and the whole town and I-!"

Leo rolled his eyes, cutting her off. "Don't people say that the elders should pass their knowledge onto the young?" He smirked lopsidedly. "Come on. Get going. I'm sure your dad is already bringing out the sledgehammer for me kidnapping you."

Zara chuckled wetly. "I should make sure my eyes are dry before I go inside… to make sure he doesn't get all overprotective and stuff." She scrubbed her face. "Oh… And I'm real sorry for being so emotional as well…" She apologized.

Leo held up a hand. "Come, now. Shoo." He frowned. "And take better care of your damn music box, you hear me?!" He yelled. "I'm not going to be here to help you fix it a third time!"

The trader's daughter smiled gratefully over her shoulder as she picked up speed, jogging back home down the paths along the berry bushes. "Will do! Thanks for everything, Leo! Goodbye!" She cried, waving her hand in the air.

Leo lifted a hand in return, giving the woman a light salute before slowly untensing his arm, letting it fall back to his side.

He gave a small, dejected sigh.

A light gust of wind and the sound of steel boots impacting ground sent the man cursing and whirling around, sword flying out of its sheath.

CLANG!

Velvet smirked, lightly pushing Leo's startled sword off of hers. "You're still too slow." She observed, sheathing her blade with a click.

Leo's eye twitched. "Now who's the one eavesdropping, huh?" He muttered sourly as he sheathed his own sword, catching his breath from the scare his friend had given him. "Jesus." He cursed.

Velvet rolled her eyes and put a hand on her hip, shifting her weight. "You didn't tell her." She observed seriously. "About Amy, and how she's a Bloodwing."

Leo shook his head quietly, his eyes turning to Vincent and Zara's homestead in the distance. "No. I didn't." He glanced at the woman pointedly. "Everyone makes their own decisions. I don't meddle where I don't have any right to."

"Oh?" Velvet raised a dangerous eyebrow. "So, I suppose that means you have a right to meddle with my decisions, is that right?"

Leo grinned shamelessly. "Not at all!" He declared as if it were obvious. "I just follow you and shoot you if you get too crazy. That's my job."

The therion just sighed in exasperation. "You're one hell of a friend, you know that?"

Leo shrugged. "Oh, and speaking of shooting, come on." He beckoned, turning on his heel in the gravel and making way towards the southern part of town. "Since you evidently seem to be free enough to be eavesdropping in on your group members, I'm sure you can help me out with some crafting."

Velvet hummed and followed the man. "I guess I can help out." She glanced up at the cloudy sunset sky. "Looks like it'll be awhile before we head out anyways." She abruptly glared at the man. "…Nothing's going to blow up or zap me or anything, right?"

"You have too little faith in me." Leo waved a dismissive hand. "If anything, we can just have Laphicet heal us, right?"

"…I'm going to regret this." Velvet muttered.

Leo laughed lightly, trotting along comfortably by her side.

A flock of geese fluttered overhead as the two made their way between the fields, idly watching the farmers wrapping up their work for today tending to their precious berry crops.

Leo greeted the local blacksmith as they approached the aged man's modest smithy, quickly and familiarly haggling on a price to rent the shop for a few hours. That being done, Leo beckoned his helper over and into the quiet shop.

It was always amazing to watch Leo work. Granted, there were many exceptions, cooking, fighting, and map-reading among them, but when it came to crafting, there was nobody better than Leo.

Finding an empty workbench to settle herself on while she watched the man work, Velvet commented lightly, "I always found it strange how, despite possessing technology far more advanced than what we have here, you're always so tight-lipped about it." She cocked her head curiously. "Are you like that for every world you go to?" She asked.

Leo nodded absently as he pulled out his notebook, paging through it and arriving at various schematics for whatever he was building. "Pretty much." He grunted, pushing the bellows and igniting the flame of the forge.

"Why is that, exactly?" The therion asked curiously. "I can't imagine the advantage it would bring if you were a bit more open with your technology."

Leo huffed, sending her a glance over his shoulder as he worked. "Eizen's been bugging me for a long time now about my gun." He narrowed his eyes, searching inside his bag for the various molds he'd brought from the Van Eltia. "I just…" He paused, searching for the words. "How do I put it..."

He snapped his fingers. "I don't like playing god."

Velvet blinked.

"Back in my old world," Leo continued as he found the specific tools needed from the blacksmith's drawers, "I found myself lacking in purpose." He cursed, realizing a tool was missing and would therefore need to be improvised.

He glanced at the watching therion. "My dad was wealthy.  _Real_ wealthy. And that in turn, meant I was real wealthy."

The revelation made Velvet's eyes go wide. "You? A money-loving aristocrat?" She asked in disbelief. The image just didn't click.

Leo gave her a look. "I've had almost a decade of travelling to lose those spoiled traits, thank you very much." He stuck a pair of tongs in his mouth as he tore up some leather. "And anyways, the point is that my wealth meant I had pretty much nothing to want for."

"Lemme guess." Velvet waved a hand. "You were bored."

"Oh, I was much more than bored, I assure you." Leo shrugged. "I had absolutely no purpose in life. Nothing really gave it meaning."

"Which was why you ended up going through with this whole world-travelling endeavor to begin with, I'm sure." Velvet finished.

"Yeah." Leo agreed. He turned around and checked the flames. "But the point is, I find meaning in having little. The whole point about exploring new worlds was to go to places that were  _different_." He raised an eyebrow over his shoulder. "You don't experience new tastes if you keep on insisting on pouring the same sauce on your dishes each time."

"So, in a nutshell, don't meddle where you don't have any right to." Velvet summarized.

"That's about it." Leo shrugged. He blinked, turning to the woman curiously. "Say, Velvet." He cocked his head. "What do you think you'd do if you were in my position?"

The question hung in the smoke-filled air for a bit as the woman pondered the question.

"I…" Velvet shook her head. "…The thought never really crossed my mind."

She raised a bandaged hand, her features hard. "The thought of anything that isn't my vengeance feels… wrong, somehow."

The flame crackled noisily in the confines of the smithy.

Leo watched with a set jaw at the woman's conflicted eyes. He shook his head. "Velvet, you can't think like that." He made his way over to the woman, his work momentarily forgotten, and met her gaze. "The future is what we live for. It's only human." He reminded.

"Human… huh?" She glanced over her shoulder at the fading daylight outside.

"…Right." She muttered.

The two of them worked quietly for the next hour, Velvet helping out wherever Leo directed her. Little words were said; the raging inferno and the cackling of iron made conversation impossible anyways. Velvet savored it while she could. She would savor all of this, before the end.

The end that was rapidly approaching.

HISS!

Leo exhaled in relief as he dropped the last piece of hot malak-infused metal into the water, allowing it to cool. With a shaky breath, the man let himself drop into the stool, wiping the sweat from his brow.

"Whew!" He sighed, leaning forward and admiring his handiwork lying on the workbench in front of him. "Looks like it all turned out pretty well!"

Velvet looked over his shoulder curiously with crossed arms, raising an eyebrow. "What… is all this?" She asked.

Leo grinned, reaching underneath the table and pulling out his rifle. "An upgrade." He stated.

Promptly, almost perfunctorily, the man began field-stripping his rifle, placing the old parts to the right of the new ones on the workbench. He nodded to his malak lazing by the open window. "Hawk over there's been getting a bit too powerful for my gun to handle the artes." He grinned at the therion. "Remember the last time I tried a Dawnbreaker?"

Velvet smirked. "We had to fish you out of the water after you'd blown yourself up and sent yourself flying." She recounted.

Leo pouted. "Exactly. And you know how badly I hate salt in my clothes." Shaking his head, he began slotting each new part onto the receiver of the rifle one by one. "So, some expensive, reinforced metal, some upgraded bullets, and here I am!" He grinned, gesturing at his handiwork. "Hopefully the strength of the materials should be good enough to withstand the heat of the artes." He shrugged helplessly. "I  _really_ would prefer not to dislocate my shoulder during a backfire."

Hawk rolled his eyes, letting out an exasperated yiff at his master.

"You be quiet over there, mister!" Leo grumbled. "Sheesh. The malak gets a little powerful and then all of a sudden he's the king of the world."

Velvet shrugs. "Wouldn't be the first one."

Shaking his head, Leo continued his methodical work, slotting in the pieces one after the other without hesitation. Abruptly registering the sound of someone coming inside, Velvet turned to the entrance.

Eizen strolled into the humid forge, nodding to the therion in greeting. "It's time." He stated.

Velvet glanced out the darkened window with Leo. Indeed, outside the heavy storm clouds had begun to pour.

Leo nodded quietly, suddenly deathly serious.

"Alright. Let's go."

He cocked his freshly upgraded rifle, chambering a freshly-crafted round.

It was time to set Zaveid free.

* * *

"UAAAGHH!"

With a wet, bone-jarring crash, Zaveid the Whirlwind crashed into the soggy grass carpeting the peak of the mountain, rolling backwards uncontrollably in agony. The group watched the malak laughed despite the pain, challenging the distant rumble of thunder.

"Haha…" He groaned, finding the ground numbly with his feet. "This…" He coughed, spitting out blood into the rain. "This takes me back." He grinned a bloody smile through the darkness. "I remember the first time I tried to talk to you." He groaned, rolling his broken shoulders. "You… you smacked me pretty good then, too…!" He smiled nostalgically, madly, holding his arms out to his side in an open display of trust.

The dragon's tail descended mercilessly.

"UAGH!"

"Man… that hurts!" Zaveid complained lightly, pushing himself once more up from the sodden flowers. "You sure… don't know how to hold back, do you…?" He grunted, pushing himself to his knees and fondly eying the dragon his wife had become across the peak from him.

The massive shadow-winged dragon opened her immensely powerful jaws and howled a vicious roar. The terrifying call of aggression echoed throughout the Aldina Plains for miles around, rivalling the thunderous booms of thunder. With a shocking quickness belying her size, the dragon Theodora lunged forward, smashing her jaw into the unresisting malak.

CRASH!

Zaveid's cries of agony rent the darkened sky in half as he flew, tumbling to a stop on the sodden grass only a few meters away from the group on the edge of the cliff. The dragon twisted in the air, roaring savagely.

"Z-Zaveid!" Laphicet cried out in worry, charging forward to help.

Eizen quickly clamped a hand on the malak's shoulder, halting his progress. "Just watch." He ordered softly.

"But…!"

Leo's grip on his rifle tightened in the rain. He exchanged a glance with the motionless therion at his side. She shook her head silently.

 _Don't meddle._ Was the message.

"Ngh…" The group turned as Zaveid found his feet, glaring at the reaper.

"So…" He spat at Eizen. "You're just waiting for me to die so you can help yourself to her heart, is that it?" He turned his gaze upon the white-horned dragon hovering in the sky, whose heart had the ability to cure a malak's blessing, an edge to his eyes. "Sorry," he muttered, "but that's not happening. I'm not dying here, and I won't let you kill her."

"I'll decide what I do, Zaveid." Eizen returned resolutely, unwaveringly.

"Fine!" Laphicet yelled, shaking the man's hand off him. "Then I'm deciding to help Zaveid, no matter what you tell me, Eizen!" He yelled defiantly.

SMASH!

"GHAAAH!"

The group watched and winced as Zaveid sailed once more through the air, having received another tail whip to the gut. Leo's jaw was rigid. Zaveid's love for his wife…

He knew all too well the lengths such a love would do to a man.

_But…_

He watched as Eizen calmly stepped up to a bruised and beaten Zaveid lying in the grass whom was reaching desperately for Seigfreid.

"This dragon wouldn't hesitate to attack a child, or the man who risks his own life to protect it." Eizen's eyes were hard as he idly picked the gun up. "Tell me, Zaveid." He ordered. "…Who is this this white-horned dragon?"

The wind malak groaned wordlessly in response, hatefully glaring at the man who had promised to kill his wife.

"You said that your creed was to never give up on living, no matter what may happen." Eizen quietly observed the weapon in his hand. "If you really believe that… would you say that you're living now?" He asked.

The rain continued to pour all around them.

"Because to me, you don't look like someone truly living." Eizen muttered, strolling forward towards the dragon hovering menacingly in the air.

"The… the hell are you…" Zaveid coughed, barely managing to rise to his knees.

By Leo's side, Laphicet's eyes widened in comprehension. "I understand now…" He mumbled. "Eizen isn't really the one who's cursed…"

Leo nodded quietly, clicking the safety off on his rifle. "That's right." He agreed lowly. "That's why he wants to kill Theodora."

The man understood Eizen's decision alright. He just didn't know if it was the right choice.

"It's time to lift this curse." Eizen declared into the storm, sliding his bracelet onto his arm and walking determinedly towards the dragon.

"Let's go." Velvet gestured to the rest of the group. "He'll need help."

Laphicet hesitated before nodding slowly. "…Alright." He decided. "Then… I'll help too."

Velvet met Leo's eyes meaningfully. In return, he gestured towards the broken form of the husband lying in the grass. He saw the understanding in her gaze. She nodded quietly, respecting his decision.

"Come on." She muttered to the others.

The rest of the group charged in to support Eizen. The ground thrummed with the tremors of explosions as the fight began in earnest. Flashes of startlingly bright color pierced the skies, visible for miles around.

Leo sighed, lightly turning his rifle over in his hands as he stepped through the sodden grass towards Zaveid's broken form.

Quietly, he crouched next to Zaveid's position kneeling on the grass whom was watching with gaunt, conflicted eyes at the battle raging at the peak. The ongoing struggle to kill his wife. Or rather, the dragon his wife had become.

"…I'm guessing you haven't found your Martha yet, huh?" Zaveid muttered into the rain, his eyes never leaving the battle before him.

Leo shook his head wordlessly, also watching the battle quietly by Zaveid's side.

The malak snorted a laugh that turned into a hacking cough. He spat a mass of blood and mucus into the flowers disdainfully. "…Just two lovestruck fools." He muttered.

The two of them watched as Eizen leapt forward, smashing his fist into the dragon with Velvet and Eleanor backing him up at his side.

Leo's voice was soft and uncertain. "I'm… really not sure what to do here." He admitted. "I can hardly say anything about this situation, seeing as I'm also trying to achieve the impossible."

Zaveid gave him a pained look. "Oh yeah?" He coughed. "How so?"

The other husband shook his head. "A whole decade." Leo muttered. "I've been trying to find my way back to my Martha for almost  _ten years_." He glanced at the malak. "I have no idea what the malakhim equivalent of a human's ten years are, but generally speaking, if a human tries to do something for ten years that's hopeless, they're considered hopelessly obsessed."

Leo sighed, fingering the safety on his rifle. "So, I really can't help you here, Zaveid, as I'm in the same boat myself. All I can say is…" He shook his head.

"…I'm alive, right now." He declared.

Another explosion detonated, lighting up the features of the two lost husbands.

Leo looked off into the rain pensively. "I know that. I'm alive." He repeated. "Even if I died without ever finding my way back home to Martha, I'd be fine with it. Because I tried my best and I enjoyed doing it, despite the odds. In that respect, we're different."

He met the malak's strained gaze quietly. "Ask yourself, Zaveid." Leo urged. "Are you alive right now?"

Leo looked up as the dragon emitted another roar, this time noticeably weaker than the others. He lifted his rifle as he stood up slowly, his eyes fixed on the battle. Zaveid watched with unblinking eyes the other man finished, "There's a fine line between persistence and obsession. That's all I can say."

With that, Leo stepped forward, away from the other husband and towards his friends, raising his rifle and readying himself for battle.

Zaveid watched silently, his jaw rigid and his eyes emotional.

In the distance, a bolt of brilliant lighting struck the ground, resounding throughout the land for miles.

* * *

"Stay back." Eizen ordered, walking forward towards the form of the downed dragon lying beaten on the sodden flowers.

"G… Get away from her!" Zaveid roared, trying desperately to struggle to his feet. "If you kill her…" He shook his head angrily. "If you kill Theodora, I'll never forgive you, Eizen!" He spat.

Eizen's steps didn't falter. "…I know." He stated.

Zaveid's eyes widened.

"HUAAAAH!"

CRASH!

Leo watched grimly alongside the rest of the group as the Eizen landed softly on the ground, the smashed-in, bloodied face of the dragon crashing down in front of him soon after.

Zaveid's screams rent the air, much more pained than anything he had uttered earlier. "EIZEN!" He screamed. "H… How could you?!"

And then the world abruptly went dark.

The group cursed as a fountain of malevolence erupted from the dying dragon, wreathing the entire peak and blotting out the sky. Ominous humming resounded through Leo's body as he cursed, watching helplessly as Eizen was forced to soak up the malevolence like a sponge.

"Guh!" Eizen grunted, falling to his knees as the purple substance enveloped him. From his back, two spikes of putrid malevolence formed.

They almost looked like wings.

"Eizen!" Laphicet screamed in horror.

"STAY BACK!" Eizen shouted urgently, groaning as the corruption seeped into his very being. "GHYAAAAAAAH!" A scream of upmost agony burst out of the man. The most pain the rest of them had ever seen him in.

"This… This is… No!" Zaveid's cries of agony joined Eizen's as he too was enveloped by malevolence, falling to his knees.

"Shit!" Leo swore, helpless to watch.

"EIZEN! ZAVEID!" Laphicet screamed, charging forward.

"NO!" Velvet shouted urgently. "It'll get you too!"

"But Velvet! Just look at them!" Laphicet cried back heatedly, stopping just short of the malevolence corrupting the ground and glancing anxiously between the suffering malaks.

"GET THE HELL BACK!" Leo's desperate shout was in vain as the malevolence greedily enveloped the poor boy as well, forcing the kid to scream in agony.

The malevolence…

Laphicet…

… _Wait a second!_

Suddenly, Leo saw the way out.

Without hesitation, the man broke into a run. Heedless of the corrupting malevolence nipping at his heels and threatening his very existence, Leo slid through the wet grass and stopped at Laphicet's side. The tendrils of corruption leered hungrily at him but wasn't as attracted to him as they were to the three malakhim caught in their despicable web.

"Laphicet! Leo!" Eleanor's cries fell on deaf ears as Leo forced the corrupted malak to look at him.

"Phi!" Leo shouted, waving the malevolence away as best he could. "PHI!" He screamed, forcing the malak to crack open his eyes and look at him, untold amounts of pain evident in his eyes.

"USE YOUR POWER!" He ordered.

"I… I can't…!" The malak cried, laboriously pushing his arm up and looking at the useless artefact sitting on his left index finger. "I… I don't know how…!" He shouted hatefully.

Leo swore, idly swatting away a creeping tendril of malevolence over his shoulder. He gathered the malak in his hands and shook him forcefully. "Damnit Phi." He cursed. "Didn't you say you'd protect Velvet from anything?! Didn't you say you had hope?!" He looked over his shoulder at the screaming forms of Eizen and Zaveid.

"How the hell are you gonna do that if you can't even protect yourself?!" He roared at the malak over the screams of agony. "You saved Videl damnit!" He cried. "You saved Velvet from herself!" He shook his head angrily. "Fuck you, you saved  _me_ from my own despair!"

"I've been travelling a long time, Phi, you know that by now." Leo cried over the rain. "So, if I tell you that you're the most incredible person I've ever met-"

SHINK!

He hissed in pure agony as a spike of malevolence pierced his leg, causing him to keel over. "-YOU'D BETTER FUCKING BELIEVE IT!"

"I have faith in you, alright!?" Leo's grip clamped onto the malak, grounding him through the pain. "So stop whining and GET GOING!" He yelled in agony. "ARE YOU A MAN OR NOT?!"

Laphicet's eyes were wide as the man began to die right in front of him, still trusting him in the face of death.

"…No…" Laphicet breathed, his fists clenching. "Leo…"

"…I won't…" He coughed, his eyes narrowing in furious concentration.

"…I WON'T LET YOU DIE!" He cried, wrenching his head up towards the sky.

On his finger, the purple ring began to glow.

"I WON'T!" The malak that was part of an empyrean screamed.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The world turned into one of azure blue fury. Detonations filled the area, pounding the corruption out with the ferocity of a giant's hammer. At the side, the group cursed and flung themselves to the ground as the peak exploded in blue flames. Trails of vaporized malevolence flew over their heads to vanish in the rain. Boiling blue embers bounced off the rocks to find obscure homes in the wet grass.

For a second, it was if they'd been transported to a different world. One of holy rage.

Velvet got to her feet heedless of the explosions. "PHI!" She screamed. "EIZEN! LEO!"

Rokurou wrenched her head back down as another furious detonation occurred. "Get down!" The daemon yelled, ducking himself as the sky lit up once more with a blue hue. "It's Laphicet's fire. They'll be fine!"

Velvet growled wordlessly in response, furious at her current uselessness. Together, the group weathered the storm caused by the young malak.

Just as abruptly as they had started, the detonations ended, leaving a cool moist autumn night in their wake. The last explosion faded softly in the wind, a gaunt imitation of the earlier blasts. As quickly as they could, the group ran up to the three figures lying in the cleansed blast zone alongside the figure running urgently towards the form of the dying dragon.

"…Damn."

Leo grunted, swearing and clutching his head he sat up, glancing dazedly around. He blinked, registering Laphicet's form as he ran by him, urgently raising his hands to the motionless dragon's snout.

On his left index finger, the purple ring pulsed with boundless energy.

"Please… Please!" Laphicet pleaded, closing his eyes in furious concentration as he attempted to channel more of the stored energy from the ring. "Turn back to normal!" He yelled desperately.

"PHI!" Leo shouted urgently, warning the malak to leap backwards as the dragon, still alive, snapped the area in front of her with her jaw.

"Ugh! I can do it!" Laphicet continued undeterred, sliding backwards in the grass and charging forward once more. "…with this flame!" He screamed as he pushed himself forward, his eyes glowing in power.

And then a hand found its way onto his shoulder.

"Zaveid!?" Laphicet cried as his grasp on his power faltered. his eyes returned to normal as he gazed uncomprehendingly up at the battered man holding him back.

"It's over." Zaveid muttered defeatedly. Laphicet gaped for words as Zaveid faltered on his feet, landing hard on the grass below and heaving for breath. "…Thank you." He whispered softly.

Footsteps signaled the arrival of the rest of the group as they neared the two.

Leo got to his feet and meaningfully shook his head at them, telling them to stay back. He turned and put a hand on Zaveid's shoulder, who looked up at him sadly. "…I guess you were right." Zaveid whispered tiredly.

Leo sighed, patting the man lightly. "There is no such thing as a right answer." He muttered, watching as Eizen stepped towards the dying dragon with fists curled, Seigfreid in hand.

Together, they watched Theodora's death.

BANG!

The rain continued to fall quietly.

As Zaveid and Eizen confronted each other one last time, Leo made his way over to Laphicet's side and gave him a empathetic pat on the head. "You did good, kid." He said supportively.

Laphicet shook his head angrily. "But… I could have tried-!" He began.

Leo's eyes narrowed. "If you had tried to purify Theodora, you would've killed yourself."

"…!" Laphicet's eyes were wide.

Leo sighed, closing his eyes and looking up to allow the rain to wash the dirt off his face. "Remember when we did that experiment on the Van Eltia? The one that you fell unconscious from?"

Laphicet nodded silently.

Leo met the malak's gaze pointedly. "The most important part about gaining power is learning its limits." His eyes turned distant, his hand absently running his fingers through his hair, over the surgical scars on his temples. "Learning when is best not to meddle, that is."

He made eye contact. "Phi, your powers are limited. You're not a full god. If you had tried to completely purify something as large as a dragon, I guarantee you that you would've either fallen into a coma or died; something far, far worse than what happened during that experiment." He shook his head, putting a hand on the malak's shoulder.

"Do what you can. And  _only_ what you can. Understand me?"

He shook his head. "This isn't an order, of course. You're free to choose your own course, as always." He shrugged. "I'm just giving you some elderly advice." His smile was more of a twitch of his lips than anything else.

"I just don't think you can help protect Velvet if you're dead." He finished softly. "That's all."

Laphicet was silent, his fists clenched hard.

Leo nodded quietly, understandingly, his own mind distant. Restraint was always the hardest thing to learn.

But it was also the most important thing to master.

The otherworldly traveler was quiet as he walked off, leaving the rest of the group to converse amongst themselves as he trotted to the edge of the cliff, observing the first morning rays emitting from the sun as it pierced the wet skies. The plains below glistened in the cold morning sun.

His thoughts turned quietly to his own wife and his own desire to see her once more before he himself died.

In the distance, a pale rainbow could be seen hovering at the edge of the horizon.

* * *

"Are you sure?" Velvet's quiet inquiry filled the quiet Stonebury inn room, reaching the rest of the group's ears as they watched the malak nod his head determinedly.

Laphicet's purple ring glistened as he lifted it, showing it openly to the rest of the group. "I'm ready." He promised. "I'm ready to take on Innominat."

Leo nodded quietly, accepting the malak's declaration. "Alright. We'll be counting on you to seal him when he's weakened, Phi."

"I won't let you all down." Laphicet assured, his eyes firm.

Rokurou chuckled, stretching his arms. "Alright! I've been waiting for this for a long while! It's finally time for the final showdown!"

Sitting on a bed with legs crossed, Magilou gave him a look. "You're sure optimistic! We don't even know if we'll be able to weaken Innominat enough to the point where the kiddo can seal him, you know."

Velvet's expression was hard. "You leave that part to me." She smirked abruptly. "Stay behind, if you want. Nobody's forcing you to come along."

"Oh, come on! Now I have to go!" The witch pouted dramatically. "Dratted reverse psychology."

Eizen commented from his seat at the table, "You've improved quite well, Laphicet." He nodded. "It's impressive."

"Yes." Eleanor nodded in agreement from her spot next to the malak. "I never thought you would actually master your silver flame like that."

Laphicet grinned. "It's all thanks to Leo's help that I managed to find a way to do so." He looked gratefully at the man leaning on the headboard of the bed. "Thanks again, Leo."

Leo shrugged. "Hey, don't thank me. I just did what anybody would do."

Eizen spoke up. "However." All eyes turned to him as he reached into his trench coat, pulling out a slip of paper. "Before we head to the Empyrean's Throne, there is one last task we should look into."

The group watched as he handed the slip to Eleanor, whose eyes widened as she read it.

"It's a message from… Jude and Milla?" Eleanor blinked. "They say to come meet them at Terror Island…?" Her eyes flew up to meet Leo's. "…And that the Harbinger of the End has a message for Leonex Davidson."

Leo blinked. "What?"

Eleanor finished, "…A message that might change the fate of the world."

Velvet furrowed her brow. "What the hell does that mean?"

"Ohoh, how very mysterious!" Magilou commented as she took the paper from Eleanor and read it herself.

She grinned slyly as she glanced up at the rest of the group. "The Harbinger of the End… how cheerful."

Laphicet cocked his head, turning to Eizen. "What's Terror Island?"

The reaper explained, "Apparently, it's a mysterious island that always moves around the outer seas and has never been plotted on any map ever." He furrowed his brow. "Now that it's been brought up, I should note that Benwick sent a Slyphjay earlier today reporting that the scout ship had encountered an island fitting that description."

Rokurou grinned. "So," he summarized, "one last detour before the final battle?"

"What do you think, Leo?" Velvet asked, turning to the man closely examining the note on the bed.

Leo met everyone's gaze. "Yeah. Let's go." He rolled up the letter in his hands. "The fate of this world is rather important to me." He stated.

The rest of the group nodded.

That night, the quiet of Stonebury felt different somehow. Like the calm before the storm.


	59. C57 - Theory

**Chapter 57 – Theory.**

Squeak. Squeak.

"…Wh-What the hell?!" Velvet breathed.

"…" Leo's eye twitched as he stood next to the therion, taking in the full glory of Terror Island, the infamous untraceable island that had roamed the outer seas terrifying sailors since the dawn of time.

A giant golden likeliness of a hatted normin stared down at the group from its perch on a cute red arch, grinning lazily as it laid on its side in comfort and happiness, welcoming the visitors to the island. An island made up of ridiculously bright-colored spongy material that made the most irritating noise when gently stepped on.

"I already hate this place." Leo muttered.

At his feet, Hawk whimpered in terror, trying his best to hide from the weirdness surrounding him.

Eleanor couldn't tear her eyes away from the statue. "…For once, Leo, I think I agree with your complaints."

"Hooooo-ee! Now this is mighty rare!" Everyone's gazes were startled downwards as they discovered two normin malaks squeaking their way over to them. "Looks like we've got ourselves even more guests!"

"Welcome y'all to Normin Island!" The other malak chirped.

Eizen's eyes bulged. "Normin… Island?!"

"Y'all must be right tuckered out from all that travelling!" The first normin nodded sagely. "Why don't you take a load off? Sit for a spell and have a snack!" He suggested lightly.

Magilou cocked her head curiously. "Huh. Normin Island, huh?"

"You heard right!" The group turned to see Bienfu and Grimoirh squeaking their way comfortably down the squeaky pier. "This island is homeland for all us normin." Bienfu explained happily.

"Ahh…" Grim sighed. "It's good to be back. I haven't been here for at least 1,500 years…"

"Oh! It's you, Grimoirh!" The other malaks chirped. "How ya been? It's good to see you!"

"And you." The malak returned lightly.

Eleanor put her hands on her hips. "If you guys knew what this place was all along, why didn't you say something sooner?" She demanded.

"Yeah." Leo muttered sourly. "And warned us of how weird it would be."

Hawk whined in agreement.

"Well," Bienfu fiddled with his paws sheepishly, "Eizen just sounded so cool talking about venturing into the unknown and all that, so I didn't wanna burst his bubble…"

Grim was unrepentant. "Sometimes it's good to let someone dream, no matter how far-fetched said dream might actually be." She finished slyly.

Eizen's glare was murderous.

"Aaaaah…" The group's gazes were drawn to the detachment of sailors that had stayed on the island reporting its whereabouts. "This island is too good to be true, First Mate…" One of the pirates groaned happily, happily receiving a massage from a multi-colored pack of normin.

"Everything's so nice and laid back here… I could just relax like this for a thousand years…" Another pirate groaned.

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "So… when people say this place 'absorbs power from all existence,'" she gestured at the group of lazing pirates, "THIS is what they mean?"

Behind them, Eizen simply kept his head covered by his palm in mortification.

"So…" Laphicet piped up. "what should we do? Do you think it's okay to mark this island on the map?"

Rokurou grinned. "Let's not. I got a feeling that this might be one of those places that's best kept a secret."

Leo sent a wary look over his shoulder at the terrifying normin statues staring unblinkingly and lazily at the group. "…For more reasons than one…" He muttered dryly.

Magilou shrugged. "Well!" She smirked. "So much for Terror Island, I guess."

Leo sighed. "What next? Is the Harbinger of the End going to turn out to be something fluffy, cuddly, and squeak irritatingly?"

The witch gave him a sly look. "Would you prefer it to actually be an all-powerful world-destroying being that judges a world either good or bad?"

"You know, going by just how much the ground is squeaking right now, I'd have to say yes." Leo grumbled.

Velvet sighed. "Why does everything have to be so strange…"

"I don't know." Laphicet shrugged. He chirped, "But on the bright side, Velvet, you're not sneezing!"

Eleanor stifled a giggle. "Yes, at least there's that. It's no Katz Korner, that's for sure."

Velvet just sighed again at the reminder.

Eizen just sighed. "Just what have Aifread's Pirates become…?" He muttered under his breath.

Rokurou blinked. "Hold up. Did those normin say  _even more_ guests?"

Leo glanced at him in surprise. "They did! That would mean Jude and Milla should already be here."

"Along with the so-called Harbinger of the End." Velvet finished. "Come on. Let's go."

Laphicet nodded determinedly. "Yeah!"

Together, the group made forward steps, onwards towards their final destiny. Squeaky, squeaky steps.

* * *

"It's Jude and Milla!" Laphicet exclaimed as the group reached the top of the highest 'mountain' of normin island; the likeliness of a frosting-covered wedding cake.

With great effort, Leo managed to distract himself from the strangeness of the locale and focus on the two people waiting from them across the field from them. "Hey guys. We got your message." He blinked. "…So, where's the Harbinger of the End that you guys mentioned?"

Velvet's eyes narrowed in suspicion. "Is there any chance either of you are the Harbinger of the End himself?"

Milla shook her head calmly. "No. Neither of us are." She denied.

The pengyon at her side flapped his wings. "But the Harbinger has entrusted us with something." Jude revealed. "The Battle of Judgement."

"The Battle of Judgement?!" Eleanor gasped as the rest of the group tensed at that ominous declaration.

Leo scratched his head. "Goddamnit." He swore under his breath.

"You're not saying that if we lose to you, our world will be destroyed, are you?" Velvet asked as she shifted her feet to angle her body proactively.

Milla nodded seriously. "That's exactly what we're saying." She confirmed.

Eizen played with the bracelet on his left wrist. "This Harbinger of the End…" he muttered. "…Did he promise to send you back to your world if you won?" He conjectured.

Leo's brow furrowed.

Jude the pengyon looked down uncertainly. "Look." He shook himself. "We just have things to do back in Rieze Maxia."

Velvet's voice was sympathetic. "I'm sure you do, but…" She closed her eyes briefly. "We've got unfinished business here in our world, too!"

Various metal songs sang out as weapons were drawn all around by the group preparing for a fight.

Magilou's smile was wry as she played with her guardians. "A girl and her pet…" She goaded. "You really want to take us on?"

"…Not a pet…!" The pengyon growled.

"MAGIKAZAM!"

"A human!" The now human Jude declared as he stood up determinedly.

"Wh-What?!" Magilou was shocked speechless. "Hey! That's copyright infringement!" She yelled angrily.

Milla continued seriously, "Such is the power of the Harbinger of the End. Perhaps now you see the gravity of this battle."

Jude agreed. "You'll have to give it everything you've got if you want to beat us!"

Leo sighed in utter frustration as the otherworldly visitors raised their weapons. "Damnit," He muttered while curling his hands tightly around his weapon, "I have  _enough_ on my plate as it is without you two  _twits_  springing the very fate of this world on my shoulders!"

"You want everything I got?!  _Well here it is!_ " He raised his rifle angrily as Jude and Milla charged.

"DAWNBREAKER!"

Hawk howled viciously by his side, rapidly charging mana.

"WAAH!" Magilou cried out in alarm. "He's pissed!"

"Everyone, get clear!" Eizen ordered urgently.

As one, the group scattered away from downrange as the man clicked the safety off on his rifle and slid his finger into the trigger guard.

Click.

BOOM!

A massive flash blinded Jude and Milla as an completely unexpected and overwhelming amount of mana burst out from the man's gun, speeding towards the two of them faster than the blink of an eye. They barely had enough time to react and get their guards partially up as the bullet landed directly in between the two of them and detonated.

BANG!

A brilliant flare lit up the isolated island, visible for dozens of nautical miles around. All around the island, normin screamed and panicked as their millennia-long rest was suddenly violently disturbed by a detonation taking a massive chunk out of the tallest mountain on the island. Giant chunks of charred spongy debris rained down into the sea down below, the flaming projectiles hissing as they plunged into the churning salt water.

The rest of the group winced as they got up from their defensive positions, squinting into the burning aftermath of Leo's mystic arte.

Without hesitation, Velvet got up and charged forward, leaping over the flames and down into the circular crater below, a fierce battle cry on her lips and a sword held high. Down in the smoke, the battle for the fate of Desolation continued against the injured yet defiant otherworldly invaders.

Rokurou was the next to follow, Eizen right on his heels. Magilou and Eleanor ran up to the edge of the crater, hurriedly sending their own explosive artes down into the smoke to harry their two foes. Laphicet worked hard to heal his teammates at range as they brawled in close combat.

Leo moaned, shaking the stars out of his head and rolling his bruised (but thankfully not dislocated) right shoulder as he absently examined his smoking rifle. A soot-stained yet brilliant smile found its way onto his face as he noted with satisfaction that the rifle had only sustained a few cracks on the barrel and receiver as opposed to flat-out imploding in his hands.

Progress.

He grinned down at Hawk who was laying winded on the ground. "That felt good." Leo muttered with a grin.

The malak tossed his tail lightly in exhausted agreement.

With a groan, Leo finished stretching out his muscles and gripped his rifle once more. "The fighting just  _never ends_  with these people." He muttered.

Hawk once again whined in agreement.

Leo scratched his head. "You know, something tells me that we won't be welcome here on Normin Island after this." He chuckled to himself, slipping another explosive round into his rifle. "Well, it's not like I liked the place anyways." He muttered.

On that note, the man rushed forward towards the battlefield, his rifle held high as he prepared to fight for the fate of this world.

* * *

"I think we're done here."

Velvet's cold declaration echoed along the walls of the crater and signaled the end of the battle, her calcite sword pointed directly in the Lord of Spirit's direction. With a grunt, she drew her arm back and prepared to end the lives of those who would threaten her revenge.

"MILLA!" Jude cried as he rushed over despite his bleeding wounds, putting himself in-between his friend and the enemy.

Velvet's sword found its way directly under his chin.

The two stayed that way, staring each other down, defiant in their own convictions. Leo exchanged worried glances with Laphicet. This could only end one way if this continued…

Suddenly, the crater was wreathed in an otherworldly golden light, stilling all action as all gazes were drawn to the source; a floating mystic orb.

A communication arte.

"This fight is over." A rumbling, powerful voice declared. "Victory goes to the woman there."

Instantly, all groups relaxed. Leo let out a sigh of relief as Velvet's sword disappeared once more into its sheath. Instead, his brow furrowed as he turned his gaze to the floating orb in the sky. Laphicet instantly ran over and began healing the wounds of both Milla and Jude.

"I take it you're the Harbinger of the End?" Velvet deduced with narrow eyes.

"Correct." The voice agreed. "I am the one who delivers judgement upon this world." The light continued to blink unerringly. "As the victor, I shall grant you one wish." It stated. "Whatever it be, speak it now."

Velvet's expression didn't change. Briefly, however, she glanced at Leo standing at the group's side.

Instantly inferring her meaning, the man shook his head without hesitation. He still had unfinished business here in our world as well.

Satisfied, Velvet turned back to the two people standing in front of her. "I want you to return these two back to their world." She stated.

Milla's eyes were wide. "…Why?" She asked.

Velvet threw a dismissive hand in the air. "You said you have things to do back home, right?" She eyed the two of them. "That's why."

The glowing orb hovering above their heads was silent for a moment.

"…Are you certain?" The deity asked. "I can grant you anything your heart desires… even the chance to turn back time and undo the past." He stated.

Leo believed him.

"No, I won't run away." Velvet refuted determinedly. "Not from my past, and not from the wrongs I've done." She gazed up at the orb firmly. "That is my decision." She declared.

 _Of course._ Leo had no doubts about Velvet's determination to see things through to the end.

"…Then the judgement has been dealt." The Harbinger stated decisively. "I sense no malice in your will. As such, the world shall not meet its demise."

"Huh?" Velvet narrowed her eyes.

"You see," everyone turned to Milla as she revealed, "your answer was the true test of judgement."

Jude nodded, shifting on his feet. "We were charged with drawing out your true innermost wish."

Velvet crossed her arms in irritation. "…Then the Harbinger's a fool." She scoffed. "I'm the Lord of Calamity, here." She stated easily.

The group flinched.

"Velvet!" Eleanor hissed.

"And what of it?" The Harbinger wasn't deterred. "Not all demons must be evil, and not all heroes must be good."

"Humans are complex creatures, as capable of love as they are of hatred, and committing sin as often as acts of charity." The deity summarized. "Goodness and malice are but two halves of one whole… the line between which is ever shifting."

Leo crossed his arms thoughtfully, eying the glowing orb.

The Lord of Calamity wasn't impressed. "Well then, you're as bad as it gets." She accused easily. "You were ready to destroy the world, had the one who answered fallen under the 'shifting notion of evil.'"

"Indeed." The orb readily agreed. "But the good within that same single person carries the opportunity to save the world, as well."

Velvet looked away in exasperation. "That's a terrible gamble." She opined.

"No," Jude refuted, shaking his head. "I always believed it would turn out this way."

Leo sighed sourly. "I didn't." He muttered to himself.

Milla nodded easily. "Me too. I trusted you would all do the right thing in the end." She smiled. "Jude has good instincts when it comes to humans."

"That's too bad, because I'm not human." Velvet pointed out.

Mila blinked in surprise. "You're not?" She shook her head. "Well, that still doesn't really change anything."

Jude nodded. "No matter if you're a human, a spirit, or a demon lord."

Laphicet piped up happily. "Yeah, that doesn't matter at all!"

Velvet's expression softened.

"Come." The orb addressed the otherworlders as it floated downwards towards them. "I have kept you two away from your world for far too long."

"It is finally time for me to return you to where you belong."

"Wait!"

Everyone blinked and turned to Leo as he trotted up to the orb floating at eye level. He frowned.

"Jude and Milla said in the message to us that you had a message for me?" Leo asked as he stopped in front of the strange deity.

"Yes, Leonex Davidson." The ball addressed the man's full name. "Your existence has been an object of my interest for quite some time now."

Leo raised an eyebrow. "I do hope that doesn't bode well for my own home world." He pointed out dryly.

"Not in any particular form." The entity dismissed. "Rather, your existence intrigues me on a level that does not match that of the judgement of other human worlds."

Leo shifted uneasily. "…How so?" He asked.

"Beings of your particular temperament are rare." The deity explained. "Especially so in humans, being the complex creatures that you are." He continued. "Your actions are inherently invasive and disruptive. You forcibly insert yourself into worlds where you do not belong. A worldly trespasser, so to speak."

Leo winced. "Well, when you put it that way… Yeah it doesn't sound that great." He admitted.

"And yet," the Harbinger observed with interest, "you belittle yourself. When offered the opportunity to disrupt, you withdraw. When given the ability to corrupt, you nurture. You do this wherever you go, without fail." The ball shifted in the air. "That is a sort of test that I myself could never hope to recreate."

Leo nodded quietly. "It's just who I am." He shrugged helplessly.

"Indeed." The being agreed quietly. "And as such, in agreement with my usual pattern of judgement, I shall offer you a reward for your lack of malice."

Leo blinked. "Er, if it's going to cause me to meet my demise, I'll pass, thanks." He immediately refuted.

"I merely wish to offer you a piece of advice." The Harbinger promised. "What you do with this information I leave completely up to your own judgement. I have but one sentence for you, wanderer."

"Alright." Leo agreed hesitantly, pulling out his notebook and a pencil. "What is it?"

"One might go so far as to call a being such as myself…" The ball of light was silent for a mere moment.

"…an Empyrean."

Leo blinked in shock.

And with that, the ball flashed brightly, transforming into a familiar, brilliant golden pengyon. Everyone's eyes went wide. And then the crater was bathed in brilliant golden light once more. A high-pitched whining noise filled the area. When the noise had died down and the light had faded, the three otherworldly beings had disappeared as if they'd never existed.

Vanished from the world.

Absently, Leo noted that the background radiation levels hadn't changed in the slightest.

As the group began to chatter in disbelief about what had just happened, Leo stayed motionless in shock. All of his attention was focused completely on those words that the Harbinger of the End had bestowed up on him.

_An… Empyrean…!_

Ever so slowly, the pieces were all falling into place.

And the picture wasn't pretty.

* * *

The quiet nighttime breeze tickled Leo's face as he stared off into the ocean, perched once more on his usual spot on the railing on the Van Eltia's stern.

The ship that he would never see again after tomorrow.

He sighed lightly, sadly. Everything just felt final. This was it. This would be the last time he ever boarded the Van Eltia. This would be the last time he would feel this particular breeze. This would be the last time he travelled with this feeling of belonging.

After all, he'd only ever entered this world with the express intention of leaving it.

The final battle was tomorrow. And once it had concluded… well, however it ended, he wouldn't be coming back to this world.

He'd stayed long enough as is.

"…Eleanor… I have a single favor to ask of you."

Velvet's quiet voice carried over the sound of the waves against the Van Eltia's port side. Leo glanced over in surprise as he took in the form of Velvet Crowe talking to Eleanor Hume alone on the empty deck.

"If anything happens to me… take care of Laphicet." Velvet asked quietly.

Leo frowned.

"...What?" Eleanor's voice was profoundly concerned. "Is something the matter?"

"The power possessed by the therions and Innominat is fundamentally the same." Velvet spoke quietly. "I have a theory…" She trailed off.

The flapping of the sails above filled the silence.

She scoffed lightly. "No. 'Theory' is Leo's word."

"A different part of me, something separate from my hatred, wants me to do something." Quietly, Leo leaned his body to the side to the point where he could spot Velvet's pensive stare. The therion was staring idly out into the horizon. The same horizon Laphi had once dreamed to explore. "…It wants me to leave this world with hope." She muttered quietly.

_She… what?_

"Wait, you don't mean…?!"

Velvet let out a light hum as she turned around, her back to the sea. "Humor me, okay?" She asked lightly. "If the worst happens… I'm counting on you."

"…I understand."

Eleanor's voice was quiet and firm. "You have my word. I'll look after Laphicet." She promised. Footsteps signaled her progress away from the therion. She spoke lightly, almost teasingly, "While I'd love to take advantage of this momentary weakness, I can't. My oath is to obey your orders until my dying breath."

Velvet's laugh was light. "I'd almost forgotten all about that." She noted dryly. "Good thing I kicked your butt after all."

Leo listened as Eleanor hmphed, striding away from the therion and returning back below deck, leaving the Lord of Calamity alone.

Standing there against her sins.

Quietly, Leo made his way down the stairs towards the therion staring out into the ocean.

"…I'd scold you for eavesdropping, but I'd just feel redundant at this point." Velvet noted wryly, not sparing Leo a glance.

Leo was silent as he stopped in front of the woman, uncharacteristically serious. "…Are you going to tell me what you're planning on doing?" He asked softly.

Velvet didn't respond, staring quietly out into the sea.

The flapping of the canvas overhead filled the silence.

"…" With a sigh, Leo trudged up to the therion's side, joining her for the final time for one final night on the Van Eltia.

If she wouldn't tell him, that was her choice. But he had his own choices to make as well.

"I've figured it all out, you know." Leo muttered.

Velvet raised an eyebrow.

He elaborated, "The Empyreans. Innominat." He looked off into the ocean. "The Harbinger's hint gave me everything I needed to connect the dots." He murmured.

He turned to the woman.

"Innominat… the Elemental Empyreans… even the Harbinger of the End himself." He waved his hand.

"They're all just members of a  _species_  of otherworldly beings."

Velvet's eyes were wide. "You mean to say…?"

Leo nodded. "What we call an 'Empyrean' is in fact a being that  _spans universes_." He furrowed his brow. "They truly are gods, in every sense of the word."

"Furthermore," Leo continued analytically, "Each Empyrean emits its own  _specific frequency of radiation_." He shifted on his feet. "A very, very specific frequency, attuned to the powers of a specific Empyrean that permeates the worlds. A unique 'signature,' if you would, attached to that specific empyrean's own powers."

"…So that's why you didn't detect any radiation when the Elemental Empyreans awoke!" Velvet realized.

She blinked, taking in the sheer scope of the revelation.

"Leo, you don't mean to say that your device runs on the specific radiation emitted by… Innominat?!"

It sounded all too crazy. All the worlds out there, and the one Empyrean she was about to kill was the source of her friend's ability to travel?!

Leo sighed, plonking himself on the railing and flipping his notebook open to the first page. "Turns out that when my grandpa stumbled upon what he called the Davidson Phenomenon, he'd somehow managed to discover this." He showed Velvet the notebook.

2.11170314301282…

The seemingly arbitrary assignment of numbers continued on for pages.

"Innominat's numerical signature. His specific frequency of radiation." Leo muttered.

"All those years ago, out of all of the surely uncountable number of Empyreans present throughout all the worlds, my grandfather just happened to discover Innominat's specific radiation back home on Earth."

"Apparently, long before I was born, Innominat's powers were being studied by my ancestors back in my home world." Leo grunted. "They just didn't know it at the time."

Velvet's eyes were wide. "So… The abnormally large amount of radiation in me… in Phi… in the other therions is because-!"

"You all are sustained by Innominat's radiation." Leo finished.

And there it was.

The true workings of a god laid out bare.

Everything Leo had been researching, the way Leo travelled through the worlds, all of the mysteries he had brought over from his childhood, the mysterious nature of his friends and the god they were fighting; everything.

It all came to a head here, together.

In a way, he supposed it was sort of poetic. Perhaps it was the workings of some being with greater influence than even the Empyreans. At this point, he was willing to accept anything as reality.

Leo exhaled lightly. "It all makes sense." He observed quietly. " _Everything_  hinges on Innominat, for better or for worse. The lives of the therions, Phi, and my very ability to travel. All of it hinges on his being alive."

Velvet was quiet for a long, long while at the revelation.

Leo continued softly, "And as far as the source of radiation goes, it would seem that as long as an Empyrean is alive, the radiation continues."

He elaborated, "I've gone through many different worlds in my travels, some of which would surely differ in terms of relative time scale to Desolation, meaning I've most likely lived through dozens of millennia relative to Desolation when passing through other worlds. Meaning I've lived through dozens of the cycle Melchior described; of Innominat awaking and sleeping over and over again with no measurable difference in my travels."

He shook his head at Velvet's confused expression. "Point is, as long as Innominat is alive, his radiation will continue to permeate the universes and allow me to travel, as well as sustain you therions and Phi, regardless of whether he is awake or sealed."

He sighed quietly, resting the back of his head lightly on the railing as he slid down it, sitting on the deck in exhaustion. "If he dies… I become stranded forever. If he dies, you all die out slowly as the radiation fades from existence." He met Velvet's eyes seriously. "Basically, if Innominat dies," he summarized simply, "…We're all fucked."

"So there." He muttered. "That's my theory."

He closed his eyes softly and listened to the crashing of the waves all around him.

"…What does this change?" Velvet asked, breaking the silence.

"Really?" Leo scoffed lightly. "…Nothing." He muttered. "It just raised the stakes, is all." He put sourly.

He reached out his hand lazily into the air. "Still." He shrugged.

"I wish my dad were alive to see me now." He grinned lopsidedly. "Figuring out the nature of gods. A  _complete_  upturning of everything we'd researched up until now." He laughed lightly. "I'm sure I'm only scratching the surface of what the worlds have in store for me."

Suddenly, the excitement in his eyes disappeared. His arm flopped dejectedly down onto the deck. He sighed.

"I'm tired, Velvet." He admitted quietly. "I'm so, so tired."

The therion watched with sad eyes, wordless as the man stared off with gaunt eyes. The expression she'd come to associate with the lonely wanderer of worlds. A simple fact of his existence.

The man looked up at his friend with a humorless smile. "I'll have to say goodbye to you soon, you know." He reminded her. "I'll have to go, even if it all does work out in the end."

"Regardless of all of this nonsense… This battling of gods, this whole keeping secrets business…" He didn't look at the therion, avoiding her guilty expression that he was sure she had on her face.

"…I just want to let you know that I don't regret it. Any of it. You got that?" He grinned up at the daemon softly in the night.

A soft smile found its way onto Velvet's face, despite it all.

"…Me neither, Leo." She intoned. "Me neither."

Together the two friends stayed in that position in silence, listening to the waves, quietly enjoying their final ride together on the Van Eltia. Together, they pushed away the thoughts of the impending final battle, and of the mind-boggling details of their enemy's nature. Together, they simply stayed there.

Together, living in the moment.

Alive.

The two hands of the clock ticked slowly onwards, towards midnight.


	60. C58 - Birds

**Chapter 58 – Birds.**

There was no wind this high up in the sky.

No howling breeze raged in Leo's ears, nor did any creaks or groans emit from the rock upon which he strode. Up here, everything was in stasis. Nothing changed in the monolithic structure surrounding them, held up in the sky by the energy field of an Empyrean.

The bright, otherworldly glow of the azure blue rock making up the massive structure they were traversing shined steadfast against all of it; seemingly even against time itself. A bright yellow ring wrapped around it all, the only proof of Innominat's power protecting the structure from the elements. A satellite in extremely low orbit.

The last remaining haven for the Empyrean of Suppression, and the Shepherd who controlled him.

"But boy," Rokurou commented as the group walked, "such an odd thing to hang in the sky. I can't help but say it's cool, though." He glanced around in awe, gazing about the strange structure. "Hey, wasn't Innominat's vessel supposed to be the earth?" The daemon asked.

Magilou shrugged as she trotted up behind the man. "Well, stereotypically at least, gods tend to have a penchant for high places." She grinned. "Gods and other things, of course."

"And other things…" Rokurou turned to the witch. "You mean birds?"

Magilou deadpanned. "I'm talking about people like you."

Velvet's steps slowed as she looked off into the curved horizon of the planet far below. "Birds…" she murmured.

"Birds fly because they must." She breathed. "Laphi said that… a long time ago."

The soft humming of the shimmering ring wreathing the hanging monolith was the only sound in the pensive silence.

"That must be the answer Artorius was looking for." Velvet realized. "And yet…" She looked down to the world below. "Is it my answer?" She asked quietly.

By her side, Leo hummed softly, his gaze following Velvet's down to the world far, far below. "Come on. The god ain't gonna kill himself." He urged quietly.

Together, the group continued onwards, making their way through the temple in the sky.

Towards the final battle.

* * *

"Even after we defeat Innominat, you'll still be able to see me normally, right, Eizen?" Laphicet spoke quietly as the group continued to walk through the empty, desolate halls of Innominat's body.

"Yeah." By his side, Eizen nodded. "We spiritual beings like malakhim and daemons will still be aware of each other like before." He closed his eyes. "But nearly every human will stop seeing us, just like Magilou said, when Innominat's presence is sealed away."

Laphicet looked down sadly.

"…Does that make you sad?" Eizen asked.

The child stared at his feet. "Doesn't it make you sad?" He asked. "I mean, Benwick and the other pirates won't be able to see you anymore."

Eizen wasn't fazed. "It doesn't matter whether they can see me or not." He stated firmly. "They already know that I'll always be right there with them." He shrugged, a wry smirk finding its way onto his face. "When I go back to being a ghost to them, I'll be sure to make their voyages VERY interesting." He promised.

"Oh yeah!" Laphicet remembered. "Back before they could see you, they thought you were a ghost haunting their ship."

"Yeah." Eizen agreed warmly. "It'll just be like old times again."

Laphicet seemed to understand. "So," he summarized, "your life will go on, alongside the pirates and their ship, even if they can't see you?"

Eizen nodded, his smile fading from his face. "But our eventual parting is inevitable." He observed. He met Laphicet's eyes meaningfully. "That's something we can never escape as malakhim, for we live far longer than any human."

"Parting is always hard." Eizen stated firmly. "If you don't want that pain, the only way to avoid it is to shun all contact with humans."

At the reaper's side, Leo frowned thoughtfully.

"Some malakhim never leave our heavenly realm, where the conflicts of foolish men are but distant rumble, hardly felt or heard." The man explained, looking off into the distance. "…But to me, humans are an inspiration, living to their fullest with the limited time they have."

Laphicet nodded quietly. "Yeah…"

"Not that malakhim are immortal, either. We have our own ends to face, myself included." Eizen shrugged. "So, I choose to live here with them, moment by moment, giving it everything I've got."

Leo spoke up quietly, "You know, Eizen," He commented, "I wish I'd met you a long time ago." He grinned, meeting the malak's eyes gratefully. "Maybe I wouldn't've spent so much of my life moping around and feeling sorry for myself."

Laphicet nodded. "Yeah. Eizen's way of life… is really relieving, in a way."

Eizen grunted. "Like I've always said, life is best when it's at its most simple. The moment I met you back in Tabatha's bar in Loegres, everything I live for can be boiled down to that one piece of advice I gave you back then."

Leo nodded. "Steer your own ship, huh?" He recounted.

Eizen nodded. "Choose what you want to do and do it." He shrugged. "Don't let anything else get in the way of what you want. That's just my creed."

Laphicet nodded. " _Our_ creed, Eizen."

The reaper let out a soft laugh as he looked down at the determined malak. "Yeah. Our creed." He agreed.

Leo's gaze turned pensive as he looked up, towards the brilliant vista of stars painted in the black void above.

"…I'm really glad to have known you all." He muttered quietly. "Honestly. I don't regret choosing what I wanted at all."

Laphicet's eyes were sad, but firm. "Yeah!" He agreed, meeting Leo's eyes with fervor. "I'm really glad to have known you too, Leo!"

Eizen chuckled. "And I as well."

His expression grew serious. "It's okay to feel lost." He assured. "Let yourself wander for a while." Eizen shrugged. "But whatever you end up choosing… decide it for yourself." He turned away. "In the end… that's all that matters."

A small grin found his way onto the Wander of Worlds's face as he contemplated the man's words.

"…Hmm." He hummed lightly, gazing off into the void. "I think… flying just feels good." He muttered lightly to himself. "No matter what comes after."

"I guess that's  _my_ final answer." He observed lightly.

In the distance, the stars continued to shine, a promise of a vast, unyielding world of worlds.

* * *

"…Leo." Eleanor whispered as the group walked, ever closer to the final showdown.

The man shook his head lightly, patting the exorcist on the shoulder. "There's nothing to it, Eleanor." He grinned lopsidedly at the familiar woman walking next to him. "I believe we've already said goodbye, back in Loegres. I don't think we need to say it again."

The praetor chuckled softly, shaking her head. "I suppose so." She conceded. "Still, I can't help but feel sad… knowing that even  _if_ we win and free this world from Innominat's corruption…" She looked away, sniffing softly. "You won't be around to live in the new world, despite all you did to make it happen."

Leo gently slung his arm around the praetor as they walked, letting the exorcist cry sadly. He sighed. "Come on, Eleanor. If you cry, you're gonna make me cry." He scolded lightly.

The exorcist just rubbed at her eyes harder.

Leo smiled softly, painfully. "Come on." He murmured, straightening the woman's shoulders. "You're an exorcist praetor, aren't you? Be proud." He grinned, meeting his former teacher's eyes. "I know you, Eleanor. I can leave this world happy, knowing you'll do everything in your power to lead it into a better, brighter future."

Eleanor chuckled wetly. "What would I ever do without your stupid jokes and constant complaining?"

Leo grinned self-depreciatingly. "I'm sure you'll be more than fine. Actually, I'm sure you'll be glad I'm gone in the end, even!"

SMACK!

"GAH! Goddamnit, woman!" Leo whined as he rubbed his face. "I was kidding! Geez!"

Eleanor hmphed self-righteously, swiping her tears off her cheeks furiously. "You're insufferable." The woman muttered vengefully.

Leo smiled softly.

"…It was nice knowing you, Eleanor. Seriously." He assured her. "I'll never forget you, no matter what."

He smiled. "Thanks for everything."

His ex-teacher met his smile. "And to you as well, Leo." She returned simply.

The two friends shared a smile as they walked, heedlessly towards the future. Towards the inevitable.

* * *

Magilou sighed as Leo made his way up to her and Rokurou at the front of the group.

"Yes, yes," the witch waved her hand. "I'm sorry to see you leave our world forever, it was nice knowing you, etcetera."

Leo grinned easily back. "You're just sour that you never won that 300 gald bet you made on me." He glared. "Which you still have not paid me, by the way."

Rokurou chuckled. "I don't think you'll ever find a way to get Magilou to pay up on any bets, not in a thousand years." He observed.

The witch shrugged helplessly. "Feh." She breathed. "You caught me in the act! I confess my sins!"

Leo rolled his eyes. "Honestly, Magilou. If it's any consolation, I can happily say without a doubt that you are the weirdest person I've ever met."

"Oho!" Magilou's eyes shined brightly. "Attempting the flattery card, I see! Too bad!" She hmphed. "You still won't be getting my money!"

The man just sighed fondly in response. "Ugh. Fine." He waved his hand dramatically. "It's not like gald has any use for me once I leave this world anyways."

Instantly, the witch sprang directly in front of the man. "Ohoho!" She chortled. "If is indeed worthless to you…" An open palm creeped up into the man's field of vision. "How about it, hmm?"

"Over my dead body." Leo shrugged as he side-stepped around the witch easily. "An occurrence that actually might happen soon. If it does," he grinned, "I promise you can have anything I have on me."

Rokurou added slyly, "If you're not dead as well, that is, Magilou."

The witch just sighed, slumping forward in exasperation. "Oh, the love. I can just taste it in the air." She muttered.

Leo chuckled, patting his hand on the witch's back. "Come on, Magilou! Just think. One last hurrah before I leave town." He grinned. "There's only a very likely chance that we'll all die in a fit of agony!"

Rokurou grinned savagely. "Sounds like my kinda send-off! It'll be a fight to remember, Leo. I'm sure it'll be appropriate for your leaving."

Magilou rolled her eyes. "And you all say  _I'm_  cuckoo."

Together, the three of them shared a laugh as they walked onwards. Unlikely friends until the very end.

* * *

"I can feel him…" Laphicet nodded. "Innominat… Is just up ahead."

The rest of the group's gazes were locked forward, taking in the stairway to the final stage of the play. The platform at the heart of the entire temple.

The final battle.

Rokurou put his hands on his hips in determination. "Finally, time to repay my debt!" He declared.

Velvet crossed her arms and gave him a deadpan. "…You just like saying that, don't you?"

"Awe!" The man grinned and scratched his head sheepishly. "You saw right through me!"

"Oh, come on, it wasn't hard." Magilou pointed out wryly. "Nobody here is gonna do anything for anyone but themselves."

Eleanor smiled lightly. "I can't deny that."

Eizen agreed, "Your wheel is yours alone to hold."

"That…" Laphicet finished, "is our creed!"

"…Hell yeah." Leo murmured quietly as he glanced up at the platform high above.

His grip on his rifle tightened.

"No more running, no more hiding." He breathed quietly. "Time to do what I know I want to do."

Velvet nodded at his side. "Yeah." She agreed simply.

As one, the group stepped forward, onwards to their destiny.

High up above them, the stars watched silently.

* * *

There, across the massive disk of transparent, smooth rock, framed in the light of the distant star, stood the Shepherd Artorius, and the Empyrean Innominat.

The saviors of the world.

The group's steps echoed quietly in the stagnant air as they came to a halt directly across from their enemies. On the floor, the sigil of the Fifth Empyrean rested dauntingly; a monument to the vast force they were opposing.

This was it.

It all came down to this.

Velvet Crowe's eyes narrowed as she gazed upon the forms of her beloved family members.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, Gentle Shepherd!" Magilou's droll voice rent the silence in the air. "The Lord of Calamity and friends are here to see you!" She declared resolutely as she came to a halt next to the rest of the group.

Rokurou grinned savagely. "I can't wait to strike down the world's greatest swordsman." His eyes glinted with raw passion.

"You picked a fight with the Aifread Pirate Crew." Eizen shifted on his feet, hands on his belt. "Now  _we're_ here to finish it!"

The two beings clothed in white watched on silently with hard eyes.

"Lord Artorius…" Eleanor gripped her spear tightly. "I follow my own will now. And I'm going to stop you!"

The Shepherd shifted slightly, his blue eyes solid and unyielding. "…In my sword lie the hopes of mankind." He stated solemnly, adjusting his grip on the sheathed sword held in his left hand, the bauble hanging from its handle tinkling gently with the movement. "The potential for a perfect world."

"Do you really believe that Will without Reason can break it?"

By his side, Laphicet nodded, playing with the glowing ring on his index finger. "…Your sword is strong." He agreed.

Artorius's eyes were hard as he observed the malak's determination.

"But… it's still only a weapon, just like ours." Laphicet stood firm and proud.

Leo shifted in his boots, standing next to Velvet with his rifle in his hands.

"No world is perfect." He stated harshly. "Perfection is unnatural."

The wanderer of worlds made firm eye contact with the savior of this world. "I'll be damned if I'm going to stand idly by and watch as your corrupt ideals destroy everything I stand for." He spat.

"…Everything I've come to love about this world I've taken to calling home." A click announced the disengaging of the safety.

The Shepherd's eyes were emotionless as he considered the anomaly standing alongside the Lord of Calamity. The man who he once considered a family friend.

"So…" He muttered quietly. "You have chosen your side. To think I had such high hopes for you in the beginning. Disappointing, to say the least."

Leo scoffed lightly, rolling his shoulders. "Say whatever you like." He spat. "I haven't felt this alive in years."

He narrowed his eyes. "Every single fiber of my being wants to be here, right here, right now. Fighting against you alongside these people." He gripped his rifle tightly. "Where I come from, where I plan on going; all of that doesn't matter, right here, right now."

"That's all there is to it."

The Shepherd was silent.

Words held no value between these two. They were utterly opposing ideologies clashing together in bloody war. They were an utter contradiction.

Will and Reason. It was just that simple.

A binary choice.

Innominat's hand shifted and cradled his right cheek as he glared at the malak his sister had chosen. "Ever since you hit me, I've had this really annoying feeling in my chest." The god muttered. "But… I can't figure out what it is."

Laphicet's eyes were hard. "Then I'll just have to hit you again and see if that helps." He declared heatedly. His fist curled, his ring continuing to glow.

"Hm…" The god hummed arrogantly. A wicked grin slid onto his lips. "I'm sure I'll feel better after I eat you."

Leo glared at the bastard hatefully.

Velvet slid in front of Laphicet protectively, her eyes hard.

"…Arthur." She called. "I finally have an answer to your question. 'Why do you think that birds fly?'" She quoted.

Up above, the layered rings of Innominat's domain continued to spin softly. Artorius's grip on his sword didn't change. Innominat's gaze was sharp.

"Bird fly… because they want to fly."

Leo's eyes were hard and determined.

"They don't need a reason. Even if their wings may snap and doom them to die."

Bright laughter.

Unwavering friendship.

A warm but temporary home.

"They don't fly for anyone's benefit. They don't fly because they were ordered to."

Cascading blonde hair.

Warm brown eyes.

The hint of a smile playing on her lips.

Velvet's boots clinked as she stepped forward in determination. "Bird fly… because they  _want_ to fly, and for  _no_   _other reason_!" She declared into the sky.

He couldn't've said it better himself.

"…So, that's your answer." Artorius muttered.

"Yes." Velvet pounded a fist onto her chest. "Because that's who I am!"

"…You were always like this." The man ground out in frustration.

His jaw was set. "That sort of foolishness is what creates the daemons and plunges the world into tragedy and despair!" The savior declared with unwavering conviction.

"Then you drive the daemons out!" Velvet yelled. "Isn't that right,  _Shepherd Artorius_!?" She seethed.

With a song of steel, the sword of reason flew out of its sheath.

"That has been my plan all along."

With that declaration, two angels charged.

Velvet growled. "…If you want to kill us…" Her bare blade flew out of its sheath violently as she rushed forward. "You'd better finish the damn job!" She roared.

"Because if you don't…"

CLANG!

The Lord of Calamity crossed blades with the Shepherd.

Velvet growled as she slid her brother's sword off of hers and kicked out, hard, forcing the man to leap backwards "I'm going…"

CLANG!

The two swords clashed once more.

"…TO DEVOUR YOU!" She roared as she slashed her daemon claw at the man.

With that, the group rushed in to join the attack.

High up in the darkness above, the gods watched as the fate of a world was decided.


	61. C59 - To the Endless World

**Chapter 59 – To the Endless World.**

"…Tenacious, you daemons." Artorius observed quietly as he stepped backwards, regrouping next to Innominat with his sword held at his side.

The group gasped for breath as they too took the opportunity to regroup, Laphicet healing everyone he could as they approached. Leo huffed, giving a thankful nod to the healing malak as he reloaded his rifle. At his feet, Hawk shook himself, forcing himself to push through the exhaustion.

On the other side of the battlefield, Artorius and Innominat were silent. Dispassionate, even. Paragons of emotionless will. Innominat's eyes narrowed as he glared at his other part healing the enemies.

"… _He's_  the reason right there." He declared maliciously.

With a burst of power, the god charged, cutting through the air like an arrow, sword held out behind him.

"I'LL TAKE CARE OF YOU!" He yelled.

CRACK!

The likeliness of Laphi cursed as he was forced to roll in midair, dodging the fired bullet. Quick as flash, Velvet was right up in front of him, crossing blades with him. "Stand aside, Velvet!" The Empyrean demanded.

"NOT HAPPENING!" Velvet roared as she spun around, slashing viciously through the air.

CLANG!

CLANG!

CLANG!

Leo and the rest of the recovering group watched as the two siblings exchanged blades, unable to do anything as they dueled with unmatched ferocity. With wide eyes, Leo watched as Innominat managed to find the upper hand, charging forward as Velvet recovered from a close-range arte with his sword held out in front of him.

Velvet's eyes narrowed as she glared at the Empyrean.

Her hand slipped into the pocket of her coat. A flash of amber glinted as she pulled out a familiar artefact of the past.

SMASH!

Laphi's comb snapped like a twig as Innominat's sword pierced it.

With a vicious cry, Velvet Crowe spun around and slashed a deep gash in the god's back. The two pieces of the broken comb clattered noisily onto the floor.

"…Huh?!" Innominat blinked, hovering uncharacteristically uncertainly in the air and staring back at the woman, his sword held limp in his hand. "V… Velvet…?"

Leo's eyes were wide. That wasn't Innominat speaking.

"Why… do you have my comb…?" The tender, soft voice of Laphicet Crowe rang out over the battlefield.

"That was…" Velvet's fists curled.

"…the comb that  _Laphi_ gave me." Her eyes hardened with conviction. "Not you, Innominat."

The sky was quiet.

"Of… of course…" The god whispered. "I'm Innominat… now reborn, and you're the Lord of Calamity."

Leo exchanged a quiet glance with Velvet.

"Aah…" Innominat's voice had returned to its normal, inflectionless tone. "Artorius… I'm hungry." He announced.

Footsteps announced Artorius's measured pace as he walked slowly past Velvet and to the Empyrean hunched over in pain.

"My stomach is empty… My chest is empty…" Innominat shuddered. "My body is empty, too… I'm…" He hiccupped. "It hurts… It hurts so much…"

Artorius's jaw was set. "It looks like we won't be able to harvest despair by eating you anymore." He observed as he watched Velvet's eyes. "…Well, then." He muttered.

His eyes closed as he stepped behind Innominat's pained form.

"Birds must fly, because they possess strong wings." He breathed softly. "Mankind must be suppressed, because it possesses great sin."

The group tensed, their weapons held out at the ready.

"Malevolence, tragedy, war, anger, tears, even love must all be suppressed." The man declared with unwavering conviction.

Velvet's eyes were hard.

"With the grace of my beating wings," Artorius declared, "I will grant humanity the tranquility it deserves."

Leo swore as he recognized the familiar tendrils of malevolence emitting from the savior of the world's form in alarming quantity.

"INNOMINAT!" Artorius roared. "Come, devour my despair!" He ordered.

Like a parasite, the god did as commanded, sinking his teeth into the neck of his master. And just like that, the world turned white. Artorius's yell of judgement resounded in the group's ears like a death knell.

"NEVN HIW EJUAM!"

"SHIT!" Leo swore as he covered his eyes. "The bastard's power is complete!"

"He's using Innominat's Armatus!" Laphicet cried.

"Everyone!" Eleanor yelled out urgently. "Get ready!"

Eizen yelled out gruffly, "This is it!"

Just as the group formed ranks, they were blinded by another brilliant flare of holy light. Of the finalizing of Innominat's armatized form, wielded by the savior of the world.

As one, the group watched as the Shepherd merged with the god. Brilliant holy wings of pure raw energy emerged hauntingly behind the man's back. A vast, royal cape of pure white lined with an interior of limitless power billowed out from behind the man. In his uncorrupted, free right hand, a massive sword of justice was held. A sword dozens of feet tall, radiating pure, vicious holy energy.

A sword of reason and will.

"Now!" The man's voice rang out with an otherworldly tenor. "With the full might of my Armatus…"

His golden eyes widened in righteous fury.

"I shall suppress… ALL OF CREATION!" The Shepherd declared as he flew forward, his wings slicing viciously through the air.

"Over my dead body!" Leo yelled as he raised his rifle, aiming at the approaching angel. He glanced over his shoulder. "Everyone, we all remember the plan, right?" He asked pointedly.

"Right!" Laphicet yelled determinedly. "You can count on me!"

Eleanor nodded, readjusting her grip on her spear with fierce determination. "You worry about yourself, Leo. We'll do our part."

Eizen nodded as he readied his fists. "Aye. Don't hold anything back, all of you."

Rokurou's grin was savage. "The thought never crossed my mind!" He twirled his short blades lightly in his fingers.

Magilou had a wild smirk on her face. "Oh boy, this'll be fun!" She cackled as she tossed a guardian up and down in the air readily.

Velvet stepped out determinedly as she stared down at the approaching god, her sword drawn. "On my mark." She muttered, her eyes hard.

With a battle roar, Artorius swung his enormous sword, seeking to cleave all the monsters in one single blow.

"NOW!" The Lord of Calamity screamed, raising her weapon.

CLANG!

Her comparatively tiny sword clashed with the giant blade, her boots skidding on the transparent stone before and her shoulder screaming with the force behind the block. At the same time the therion's daemon claw came out, pushing against the tip of the blade with tremendous power, heedless of the sharp edge burning away at her palm.

"HAAAAAAH!" Velvet roared viciously as her eyes turned red with mana. Her daemon claw clenched around the sword.

BANG!

A massive detonation sent a tremble throughout the temple, shaking the very foundations of the structure. Artorius was sent hurtling back, grunting as his wings flailed in an attempt to stop his flight backwards.

And in that single moment of weakness, the villains pounced on the hero.

"KILLING BLAST!" Rokurou roared as he leapt in out of nowhere with a single hand on Kurogane Stormhowl. "All life is ephemeral…" He declared. "…WHEN KISSED BY MY BLADE!"

With unmatched grace and poise, the master of the Rangetsu style pulled out his sword and charged forward.

"FORM 9…!"

Massive crashes signaled each of the yaksha's strikes as he carved a bloody path over Artorius's untainted white clothing, painting the floor with golden blood.

SHINK!

"FINAL JUDGEMENT!" He announced.

With a resounding click, Rokurou's sword found its way back into its sheath as he finished, his back to his bleeding opponent.

"Now…!" Magilou's blown kiss pushed a guardian straight to Artorius's stunned feet. "With a single breath…"

BANG!

With a dramatic explosion, the guardian exploded upward, stabbing upward into the armatized Shepherd's being. "They appear!"

"Here they come!" She announced as a legion of guardians appeared out of nowhere, stabbing from different angles with spikes of multicolored mana into the Shepherd's body. "There's no stopping them now!" With a glorious twirl, the witch put a hand on her hip and pointed a condemning finger at the Shepherd as the guardians converged.

"GOOD GRIP!"

A massive tremor shook the temple once more as the guardians detonated in a festive explosion, raining down brilliantly hued drops of sizzling mana tainted with the Shepherd's golden blood.

"Ready to die?!" Eizen roared as he channeled all the mana he could muster, shrouding his body in dark mana. His eyes burned with vicious flame.

"Whatever comes next…" He began as he dove down, the power flaring out behind him like the wings of doom.

"This is just the first step!" He roared as he pierced the man like a soaring dragon.

With a violent explosion of purple malevolent mana, the man threw his fist directly into the man's stomach.

"TO KILL YOU!"

With a roar, the man thrust his chest out and screamed, exploding all the mana around him and blotting out the sun with his power.

"HOWING DRAGON!"

Artorius's limp body was sent flying into the air.

"Here it comes!" Eleanor declared as she rushed forward, her spear held out righteously.

"The light of my conviction…" She declared as she spun her spear in her hand while trailing spikes of mana, "…will pierce even the heavens!"

The Shepherd's body was cast up into the air, ravaged by the boiling forces commanded by the twirling spear.

"TO STRIKE YOU DOWN!" Eleanor declared, grabbing her spear and holding it tightly in her right hand as her left palm rose in preparation.

"GUGNIR TWISTER!"

BOOM!

A brilliant spear of pure sizzling electric mana exploded out from Eleanor's spear tip, piercing the very heavens itself with Artorius's body right in the middle.

As the man's body fell limply in the air, crackling with residue electricity, Leo made eye contact with Velvet at his side.

"No mercy." She uttered quietly.

"Let's do it." Leo agreed.

Together, the two of them nodded. At Leo's side, Hawk began to prepare for the final push.

This was it.

The moment the Shepherd crashed down hard onto the stones, gasping, Velvet spun around lightly, her daemon claw erupting from her hand. A thunderous thrum of power resounded throughout the air as her calcite sword unsheathed, glowing purple with mana.

"If you think this is hell…" Velvet intoned softly as she tensed.

" _I'M JUST GETTING STARTED!"_

The Shepherd was helpless to guard as the woman charged with the wrath of a furious beast, slashing and clawing with both sword and claw in a whirlwind of red and violet.

"I'll drag you down…" Velvet roared as she slashed one last claw across the Shepherd's chest before leaping inhumanly high into the sky.

"AND GRIND YOU INTO EARTH!" She yelled. A massive ball of churning mana formed in the palm of her daemon claw. "LEO!" She prompted, twisting her body towards her friend standing below her.

"ULTIMATE ARTE!" Leo resounded as he aimed his rifle directly at the woman flying in the air.

Click.

BOOM!

All the mana that Hawk had left in his body surged through the detonation of the gunpowder, forcing the explosive bullet forward in a massive flash of pure power. Leo yelled in agony as his gun exploded in his hands but held on tightly, continuing to channel mana through his body and into the air, sending it soaring directly to his friend's direction.

"HAAAAH!"

With a roar, Velvet Crowe twisted around into the air and guided the missile, compounding the trail of mana with the energy gathered in her palm. A brilliant flare blotted out the entire night sky, visible from the very surface of the planet below.

Leo and Velvet roared as one as the energy peaked and as the woman began to fall back to earth.

" **IMPULSE… DAWN!"**

CRASH!

The world was reduced to nothing but flashes of brilliant neon green and red streaks and the howling of a massive godly explosion as the Lord of Calamity clashed with the weakened Shepherd.

Leo was thrown bodily away from the detonation, shouting in pain as he landed, rolling for quite some time on the painfully hard rock. He groaned as he dazedly opened his eyes, in unbelievable agony. There was a persistent ringing sound in his left ear. The explosion had completely and utterly fried his coat, leaving him bleeding from countless burn wounds and grazes. Everything hurt.

Laphicet quickly ran up to him along with the rest of the group, everyone's breathing ragged and weak.

As the malak's healing seeped into his veins, Leo clutched Laphicet's arm urgently.

"Phi. It's up to you and Velvet now." He coughed, cursing as another tremor of agony flew through his broken body.

"When she gives you the chance… Seal him! Seal him with your powers!" He urged.

The malak nodded solemnly. "I won't let you down, Leo."

"Go…" Magilou coughed as she bent over tiredly, utterly deprived of mana. "Go get 'em, kiddo." She smirked wryly.

Eleanor nodded, leaning on her spear as she wobbled on her feet. "We believe in you, Laphicet!" She encouraged.

"Yeah." Eizen put a weak hand on the malak's shoulders. "We gave it our all, Laphicet. Now it's up to you."

Rokurou nodded, stretching his sore shoulders tiredly. "It's all up to you now." He reaffirmed.

"…Yeah." Laphicet nodded as he stood, stepping forward towards the battling Lord of Calamity and Shepherd.

"It's time to finish this." He stated as he walked away from the group, towards the battling brother and sister.

* * *

"You've… grown strong…!" The Shepherd breathed as he caught his breath.

"Let us settle this… here and now… Lord of Calamity." Artorius's beaten yet determined voice rang out into the sky as he recovered, his sword held out powerfully to the side.

Velvet's fists curled as she charged once more. "SHEPHERDDDDD!" Velvet cried.

The angel and demon clashed together in the heart of the heavens.

"I swear…!" Velvet roared as she dodged the massive sword, retaliating with her own sword strikes. "I WILL FINISH THIS!"

Both brother and sister grunted heatedly as they exchanged sword strikes once more.

"I will devour all this hatred!" The Lord of Calamity declared as she flew backwards through the air, recovering quickly from the fall. Artorius's sword fell once more as he attacked with impunity.

CLANG!

Just like that, the calcite sword that Leo had bought Velvet cracked and shattered. Velvet grunted as she was pushed back by Artorius's massive swing.

"NOT DONE YET!" Velvet yelled as she charged forward once more.

The Shepherd screamed in uncharacteristic, pure frustration. "Stop STRUGGLING!" He roared.

CRASH!

With an explosion of mana, Velvet latched harshly onto the man's body, her daemon claw pushing viciously against the man's sword.

The two flew backwards in conflict.

"Give up your fight!" Artorius demanded. "I will end this world's sadness!" He exclaimed. "I HAVE TO END IT!" He roared in pure, unadulterated, manic obsession.

"Arthur's… forgotten… MAXIM!"

CRUNCH!

With a cry, Innominat flew out with the invasion of Velvet's fangs as she tore him violently out of the man, forcibly disconnecting the Armatus and sending the god tumbling to the side. Leaving only the savior of the world in her grasp.

"HAH!" With an acrobatic kick, the therion spun around in the air and punted the man's sword into the air.

"Don't despair…"

Velvet Crowe caught Artorius Collbrande's sword in midair as they fell.

"NO MATTER WHAT!"

SHINK!

The bauble on the man's sword tinkled gently as the sword of justice came to a halt.

Plunged into the stomach of the man whom had sought to wield it.

The dying man coughed, blood leaking out of his mouth.

"…Spoken…" He coughed. "…Like a true… hero…" He muttered.

The woman holding the sword that had killed him smiled softly, gently. "It's what you told me once, long ago." She murmured.

The man's pure blue eyes widened. "On the day…" He gasped. "…of the Opening…" He exhaled.

"Velvet." He spoke tenderly, finally recognizing the woman in front of him as the sister he'd ruined.

"…The Arthur you knew died that day." He breathed.

The stars were silent.

"It was always there… in the back of my mind." The broken man took a shaky breath. "If only it hadn't been Celica and my son… who were killed that day." He spoke softly.

His gaze turned up to the bauble hanging from the sword through his stomach. "If only it had been you two instead…" He murmured.

Velvet nodded quietly. "I thought the same thing… So many times." She revealed softly. "If it had been  _us_ … then I know…" She shook her head.

Her voice began to shake. "I… know you would've fought to save the world for us." She affirmed with absolute certainty.

Artorius's voice was longing. "It's true… I wanted to save everyone." He remembered softly.

The man's eyes closed forever.

"Such… a pity."

Velvet's tears fell softly on the man's cheeks.

Leo sighed, quietly, as he watched.

In the very end, Artorius Collbrande didn't even shed a single tear himself. His murderer was the one who did.

Such was the extent of his corruption.

And just like that, the Shepherd passed from this world. A poor, obsessed man finally set free from his own monstrosity. From his own twisted sense of reason.

From his sins.

The Lord of Calamity had finally defeated the Shepherd.

"…Goodbye." Laphicet murmured quietly.

"It's finally over." Rokurou muttered.

Slowly, as if afraid to break the silence, Leo made his way up to Laphicet's side. "…Alright, Laphicet. You know what to do." He spoke, gesturing to the broken, shaken form of Innominat lying abandoned to the side.

With burning determination in his eyes, Laphicet nodded, stepping forward. His ring glowed softly on his hand. Softly, Laphicet stepped up to Innominat's dazed form, and raised his hands directly towards the Empyrean. His eyes began to glow, his ring flaring brightly.

Leo's eyes were hard as he watched the malak intently.

Everything came down to this moment.

He shifted, his hands balled into fists. Hypotheses were all well and good, however…

"Here's your justice!" A brilliant blue fire burst forth from Laphicet as he yelled, golden links chains surrounding the stunned form of the Empyrean.

…In the end, they were just that. Hypotheses. Educated guesses.

" **BINDING ORDER!"**

The malak yelled out in fury.

With a massive hum, the malak began channeling the ambient radiation through his ring, converting the raw energy only he himself could use into links to bind a god. The group watched with building tension as the blinding colors flashed, illuminating the sky as Laphicet strained, forcing all the power he could manage into the arte.

Leo's fists curled. Only through true real-world experimentation could one confirm one's guesses.

Over the hum of the arte, Leo blinked as he discerned a single phrase being repeated over and over again.

"I'm hungry… I'm hungry… I'm hungry… I'm hungry…!" Innominat's maddened rantings set the hairs on the back of Leo's neck upright.

"Leo."

Velvet's voice was hard as she and the rest of the group made their way over to the man, watching as Laphicet strained, continuing his progress and adding more and more golden chains to bind the Empyrean.

"Will this work?" She asked quietly.

Leo didn't look at her, his eyes fixed on the malak as he worked.

"…Who the hell knows." He muttered.

Eizen spoke up. "We never knew the extent of Laphicet's power in relation to Innominat." He pointed out roughly. "Even if the Empyrean is weakened, it's still a gamble either way."

Eleanor's eyes were wide. "And if he fails to seal Innominat away…?" She prompted.

"Then it's good night for Innominat." Magilou finished quietly, her gaze hard.

Leo nodded slowly. "Let's hope that's not the case." He watched as Laphicet yelled once more, stressing every part of his being to add to the prison of chains whirling around the Empyrean.

"…It's all up to Laphicet, now."

Together, the group watched tensely as the malak continued to work, helpless to aid in the dealings of gods.

Leo's fists were clenched. The fate of his friends and himself hinged on this very moment.

"I'm hungry… I'm hungry!"

Laphicet yelled out in alarm as cracks of pure white mana began to burst out from behind the chains, easily shattering them as if they were made of paper.

Leo's heart stopped.

"Get back!" Eizen yelled.

"NO!" Leo yelled in vain as the energy contained in the prison pulsed.

"I'M SO  _ **HUNGRRRRYYYYYYY!**_ "

CRASH!

Just like that, all of the group's efforts were blown away in an instant. Laphicet cried out as he was thrown back by the sheer force, the shards of his useless prison vanishing into the air alongside the all-powerful explosion of godly power.

Eleanor cursed as she barely managed to catch Laphicet as he was cast through the air by the raging gales billowing out from the unhindered form of Innominat. "His… his power is running wild!" She screamed.

Rokurou cursed. "That didn't work! He's just too strong!"

Magilou grunted. "No helping it now! Either we kill him or we all go up in smoke!" She yelled.

Eizen swore, running forwards. "We still have time!"

Laphicet scrambled to his feet. "No… No!" He yelled helplessly. "It can't be… It' can't be all for nothing!" He shouted.

There was untold despair in the malak's eyes.

Leo's eyes were wild. "No… no you're right… there has to be…"

With a renewed fervor, the man dug into his burnt coat and pulled out the thankfully intact notebook. He flipped through everything he'd researched. All of this effort. All this information. All this data. All these theories…

Was it all for… nothing?!

… _NO!_

With a vicious curse, the scientist racked his brains like he'd never done before. Everything flashed before his eyes.

But he didn't give up.

Leonex Davidson refused to be useless anymore.

"…LAPHI!" He roared, pushing forward against the raging gales. "Laphi, it's me! Leo!" He yelled.

The powers rushing through the air were stifled for a second as the helpless god wearing a child's face hiccupped. "I… I endured it all!" He whined. "Even though I was scared… even though it hurt!"

"I drank that gross medicine!" He yelled as Leo approached. "I stopped myself from doing what I wanted to do, eating what I wanted to eat!"

"I tried so hard…! Why do you all still do this to me?! I hate you all!" He pouted.

Leo's eyes softened as he stopped in front of the wobbling god. In the end, the all-powerful, menacing god was simply another child.

A lost boy with a different boy's memories.

"Hey… Laphi." Leo mumbled softly. "Remember what I said about metal ships?"

"H-Huh?"

Leo found a kind smile on his face. "I've been all over the worlds, Laphi." He explained genuinely. "I've seen things that you could never dream up in a thousand years." He gestured up into the sky, at the stars above.

"I've seen vast metal ships that float through the ocean. I've seen the most brilliant and beautiful of natural vistas the worlds have to offer. I've seen people and cultures so wonderfully unique you could never find any like them anywhere else..." He exhaled lightly, turning to the Empyrean staring at him madly.

"I plan on continuing my journey, Laphi." He smiled softly, extending a hand.

"…Would you like to come?" He offered.

The group gasped behind him.

"Wh-what?! What are you talking about, Leo?!" Eleanor gasped.

"That's suicide!" Eizen yelled. "He's a ticking time bomb!"

The mad Empyrean gaped at the man in front of him. "Would… would there be food?!" He pleaded. "Food that I could eat?!"

Leo nodded soberly. "I promise." He assured. "You just need to listen to me for a bit, and I promise you, Laphi, we'll find a nice world to settle down in."

"I… I don't think I…" Innominat gasped, clutching his stomach, the energy shaking the very earth he stood on. "I can't… I can't…!"

"It'll be fine."

Velvet's voice cut through the silence as she stepped up besides Leo.

"I'll come with you." She offered.

Leo's eye bulged. "What?!" He hissed.

She shifted her weight lightly, glancing at the corpse of her brother behind her. "I see what you're doing, Leo." She explained.

"If Innominat is trapped in a different world, his radiation will continue to sustain all of us, right?"

"Yes." Leo nodded. "So then why are you-?"

His friend looked him dead in the eye.

"'Don't meddle,' right?" She quoted. "It's not in your nature to play god, Leo. I know that." She turned her eyes softly on the likeliness of her brother whimpering in front of them.

"If you bring Innominat with you, you'll risk destroying everything on the next world you arrive in, including yourself." She muttered. "What if the next world is your home world?"

"I know you, Leo. I won't allow you to do this to yourself." She returned firmly.

"Well, you got any better ideas?!" Leo yelled back. "Because right now it's looking pretty fucking bad!"

Innominat whimpered at the man's yells.

Velvet's eyes went soft. "Laphicet…" She murmured, reaching forward with her arms.

Slowly, tenderly, the older sister enveloped her brother in a loving hug. "…You tried really hard. But…" She closed her eyes. "…you don't have to fight anymore." She promised quietly.

Leo watched in horror as Innominat sunk his teeth into Velvet's exposed shoulder. "VE-!"

The therion didn't flinch. "It's time for us to rest… Laphi." She murmured. With a squelch, Velvet's daemon claw stabbed into her brother's back. The two stayed there, the power emitting from Innominat's being beginning to even out.

Leo's eyes were wide as he realized what his friend was doing.

"Velvet… Velvet! What are you doing?!" Laphicet's cry rang out.

"So that's it…!" Eleanor muttered. "That's what she meant that night…"

"Velvet will let Innominat devour her forever, with her forever devouring him in return." Eleanor explained softly in awe. "She will seal him while keeping him alive… An infinite contradiction. A perpetual cycle of destruction."

"Velvet… you can't!" Laphicet cried out.

Velvet's eyes opened as she gazed at the malak.

"You and I are part of Innominat, Phi." She pointed out softly. "If he dies… both of us die too."

"I dug my own grave… but… but you…" She murmured.

"I don't care about myself!" Laphicet shouted angrily as he ran forward, desperately trying to save his friend. "I'm not scared of dying… as long as I'm with you!"

He grunted as an apple flew his way, thrown by the therion preparing her final wish.

"Good." Velvet smiled brightly, maintaining her grip on her brother's form. "Then die." She wished. "But… only after eating. Living. Doing everything you want to do in life."

Laphicet's gasp of uselessness rang through the air. "But!" He breathed.

Velvet just laughed softly. "I really am horrible… aren't I?" She murmured. "Just a selfish failure of a human being." She smiled kindly. "But despite all that, you still saved me. With your unwavering kindness and strength."

"But… but Velvet! I didn't do anything! I couldn't!" The malak's grip on the apple tightened. "Velvet… you were the one who-!"

"Phi." Velvet's eyes were soft. "You must've seen it during our travels." Her eyes turned to meet Leo's. "Humans spend their lives in constant struggle… that's why they end up making so many mistakes."

"Even my poor brother…" She murmured, casting a glance at the body lying bleeding on the floor.

"That's why I'm asking this of you… Please, live." She begged. "I was the cause of so much chaos and destruction… Help the world I ruined." She pleaded. "Help people like me. Help the weak."

"This is… my last, selfish request."

Leo's fists curled.

Laphicet sobbed. "That's…" He gasped. "That's not fair!" He cried.

Velvet's eyes began to wane. "I'm truly… sorry." She murmured.

Laphicet's eyes hardened. With a furious wipe, the malak pushed the tears out of his eyes and tore savagely into the Fortune Apple in his hands.

Chewing wildly, the malak cried, "…It's okay!" He yelled. "I forgive you!"

"Velvet… I love you!"

Despite the emotions running through his head, Leo still found a soft, bittersweet smile on his face. That kid was the only one who could ever forgive Velvet Crowe for her sins.

Like always.

"Thank you…" Velvet breathed. "I… I love you too… Phi…"

She breathed slowly in and out, turning her head to meet her friend's troubled gaze.

"Leo." She murmured. "You've done so much for me… ever since we first met."

Leo glared at her without malice. "Of course I have. That's what friends do… isn't it?" He pointed out softly. "Fucking idiot…!"

The therion laughed quietly. "Yeah… I guess I am." She sighed, the energies swirling around her and Innominat increasing.

"Then, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask… one more favor of you, Leo."

The man nodded quietly, stepping forward to the therion. "I've said it once and I'll say it again. I'm here for you."

Velvet nodded quietly. "Find us a nice place to rest… would you Leo?" She closed her eyes. "Somewhere quiet. Peaceful."

Leo nodded quietly, his eyes wet with emotion, fully understanding the nature of her request.

She was asking for proper burial.

"…You're damned right I will." He murmured softly, patting the therion light on the shoulder heedless of the swirling mana. "I'll find you a nice place… next to the ocean." He grinned softly, despite the tears running down his cheeks. "I promise."

"…Later, Velvet." He muttered as he took a step back.

The therion smiled softly as she closed her eyes. "Thank you. For everything." She murmured.

"…Goodbye."

And just like that, the process was complete.

Innominat had been sealed. At the cost of Velvet's own being. The humming ball of mana hovered there where the two forms had been; a contained mass of pure energy, tempered only by its own contradictions.

A prison for two.

Shakily, Leo exhaled, rubbing his head and trying his damndest to catch up with the emotions raging in his mind.

"Leo…?" Eleanor spoke.

The man turned and watched as the rest of the group quietly made their way over to him, the light of the contained god framing his figure. He scoffed lightly, wiping the tears from his cheeks as he gazed upon all of them.

His friends. His family.

"Eleanor, you know how bad I am at goodbyes." He reminded softly.

His former teacher nodded quietly, sniffing softly.

Leo looked down at Laphicet, who was staring with pained eyes at the glowing orb where the therion he loved was imprisoned. "I'll take them someplace nice." He murmured. "I promise."

Laphicet's eyes were full of sorrow. "…Thank you, Leo." He breathed.

"So," Eizen summarized, "I assume you've figured out how Innominat's power works?"

Leo nodded quietly.

"As long as Innominat is alive," He explained to the group, "the therions and Phi will continue to live. It doesn't matter where he is, or what world he's in. That's just how Empyreans in general work."

"So…" Rokurou spoke up, "that's why you're taking them somewhere else." He realized. "Somewhere safe, where they can be alone forever."

Leo nodded quietly as he stared at the glowing orb vacantly. "I'll find a place for them to rest." He muttered. "Somewhere with no other life for them to disturb. Somewhere where Innominat's power won't be any threat to anyone."

Magilou nodded. "It's a good plan." She commented seriously. "…Go get 'em, Leo-boy." She grinned wryly.

Leo huffed. "Here." He reached into his coat and tossed a bag of gald at the witch who caught it in surprise. "It's yours." He grinned.

The witch cackled lightly. "I just knew you'd break!"

Rolling his eyes, Leo took one last fond look at the people standing in front of him. With a practiced thought to the machine in his brain, Leo prepared to leave.

BEEP!

"Notice. Added three additional entities to jump. Power requirement increased. Notification code: 7081."

BEEP!

"Notice. Confirmation required. Notification code: 7021."

He shifted on his feet, readying himself for the jump. "All of you." He murmured. "Thank you. For everything."

Everyone nodded back at him.

Magilou had a victorious smirk on her face as she hefted the gald bag in her hands.

Rokurou was grinning easily as he gave the man a thumbs up.

Eizen had his hands on his belt as he nodded; a gesture of good faith.

Eleanor wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled brightly at the man in farewell.

Laphicet's eyes were pained yet determined. He was alive.

Deep inside of him, Leonex Davidson knew. He knew that they'd be alright. The man laughed suddenly, shaking his head.

"You know, it's funny." He grinned lightly. "I spent all this time scared shitless of this moment. And now that it's here…"

He looked up into the distant stars with a soft smile.

"…It doesn't even seem all that bad." He observed wryly, nodding his head.

BEEP!

"Notice. Initializing. Notification code: 7029."

A humming filled the very fabric of his being as the device began the familiar routine of transporting the man to a different world. A familiar whining grew louder and louder in his ears. He let out a sigh as the whining peaked, his vision of the stars blanking out as the machine overrode his sensory processes in favor of easing the transition.

"Goodbye." He whispered quietly to his friends.

A sudden blinding flash of light briefly illuminated the temple in a brilliant cutting burst of color in a dull world.

And then just like that, the flash vanished, revealing an empty platform in its wake. Only the former friends of the Lord of Calamity remained, alone.

Only gods kept them company up there high in the sky.

**End of Part 9 – Universe.**


	62. C60 - Prison

**Chapter 60 – Prison.**

Leonex Davidson was tired.

Granted, these days he was always tired, one way or the other. But today was especially tiring; it was just one of those days.

The sound of his boots scrunching in the lifeless dirt was the only noise in the vast desolate plains surrounding him. The man's eyes roamed the expansive, featureless landscape. Nothing but dirt and ash. High in the sky, a dying dwarf star burned quietly, providing just barely enough light for the man to see clearly, but not enough to provide the much-needed warmth to sustain life. This world was dead. No other stars lit up the sky at night.

He'd seen enough. This was the place.

A burial site suitable for a god and his sister.

He trudged forward, headed to a brilliant orb hovering slightly off the dirt in the distance. Velvet and Innominat were right where he'd left them, resting in the exact place that they'd arrived at.

Right on the edge of a cliff next to a lifeless, motionless ocean, just as he'd promised. More of a glorified puddle than anything, but Leo figured they wouldn't be too picky. He took another look around at his surroundings, hefting the rebuilt lever-action rifle strapped onto his shoulder.

He let out a soft sigh, staring blandly out into the distance.

Leo blinked as a familiar flash of green announced the appearance of his ever-faithful companion. A soft smile found his way onto his face as he remembered the astonishing fact that he wasn't alone anymore. Not completely.

Hawk nudged his master's leg softly, keenly aware of how the man was like to fall into brooding in the silence.

"Yeah, yeah." Leo mumbled softly, rubbing the malak's head quietly in acknowledgement. "Thanks, bud."

The wolf yipped softly.

Together, both man and malak walked forward towards the imprisoned Empyrean in the distance through the wasteland.

"…A whole year." Leo contemplated as he walked. "Despite how much radiation Innominat has been putting out in his domain, it's taken us a whole damn year to find a suitable world for those two."

Hawk yipped inquisitively.

The man nodded at his malak. "Yep." He exhaled tiredly. "…This place'll do."

He glanced around. "As far as I can tell, there is no life here. And if there is… well." He looked up in the sky. "…They'll have to be far enough away that Innominat and Velvet will never be disturbed." He stated firmly.

The ever-present humming of Innominat's power greeted them as they approached the embracing pair perched next to the vast motionless lake down below. Leo's eyes were sad as he gazed on the familiar shade of Velvet and Innominat, held together tightly in an eternal embrace.

Already, the memories he'd made in Desolation had begun to slowly fade away. Already, the faces of his friends, the places he'd been to, the happy memories; all had begun to disappear once more into the void.

Like always.

Quietly, Leo settled himself down on the edge of the cliff a few meters away from Innominat and Velvet, gazing out quietly at the stagnant waters hundreds of feet below him.

"I wonder," Leo murmured to Hawk as the malak settled down on his haunches next to him, "…exactly how long has it been since we left?"

Hawk cocked his head inquisitively.

"I mean," the man elaborated, "We've been through  _hundreds_  of worlds this past year." He sighed. "Most likely, a few seconds spent on some of those worlds would've meant years in Desolation."

"A millennium could've passed relative to Desolation, for all I know." Leo muttered.

"Everyone; Eleanor, Laphicet, Rokurou, Eizen, Magilou…" He sighed. "They're most likely long gone by now." He murmured.

Quietly, Hawk nudged him once more, whining.

Leo twitched his mouth into a smile briefly. "…Yeah." He breathed. "You're right." He sighed, leaning back and staring up at the poorly lit sky.

"You're right." He muttered softly.

Together, the two otherworldly travelers stayed like that, simply laying in atrophy in a stagnant world. Thinking of the past.

Just one of those days.

Quietly, Leo abruptly stood, softly making his way to the familiar glowing orb of power containing the people that he had taken under his care.

"Is this okay… Velvet?" He mumbled.

Leo chuckled softly at the lack of response. "…Well, this is what you're getting. I hope you like it." He sighed softly, considering the blinding light in front of him. The two beings in eternal slumber.

He was ready to go. To leave these two forever. It just didn't feel right at all. Velvet Crowe didn't deserve this fate. Not in Leo's book, she didn't.

He could do it, if he wanted to. He could charge into that stagnant ball of energy and forcibly tear his friend out from Innominat's grasp and escape this world, condemning the god to eternal solitary confinement.

He could do it.

He sighed softly, shaking his head.

Leonex Davidson didn't play god. He would not presume to correct Velvet's own misguided choice to seek redemption by self-sacrifice. He would not presume to doom an entire universe to the destruction that would inevitably follow should he attempt to save his friend's life.

He silently contemplated the two figures in the ball of stagnant mana.

An infinite contradiction, Eleanor had called them. A perpetual cycle of destruction. Reason and Emotion. Two halves of the same whole. In a way, Leo supposed there was a certain beauty to it.

Oh, but how he  _wanted to_. He didn't want to leave his friend here in this cold, dead universe with a cold, delusional image of her dead brother held in her loving grasp.

But it was  _her_  choice. He would not meddle. He would not play god.

Sighing one last time, Leo turned away from the two with finality.

"Hawk." He spoke softly.

The malak nodded slowly, respectfully. It was time to go.

"…Alright." Leo breathed, steeling himself.

BEEP!

"Notice. Added one additional entity to jump. Power requirement increased. Notification code: 7081."

BEEP!

"Notice. Confirmation required. Notification code: 7021."

Leo took one last look over the desolate horizon with a detached expression. The silence held firm. He didn't look back. There was no point in staying. He closed his eyes, readying himself for the future.

Just one of those days.

"…Leo."

"W-What?!" The man's eyes shot open in shock. He whirled around to face the source of the familiar voice.

He gaped.

"You?!"


	63. Epilogue

**Epilogue:**

Birds chirped outside.

A soft autumn breeze rattled the window of the warm household, dry leaves clinking as they pattered against the exterior walls.

Velvet grinned as she sauntered into her brother's warm sunbathed room, absently adjusting her ponytail behind her back.

"Laphi! Lunch's ready!" She declared.

Laphi smiled back up at her from his seat in front of his table which was utterly laden with a mess of charts, maps, and diagrams.

"Hey Sis!" He greeted. "Look!" He grinned as he showed her a picture in one of the books on the table.

Velvet hummed, bringing a thoughtful finger up to her lips, playing with the hunting pouch strapped to her outfit.

A vast sunny expanse of a tropical island.

A place she'd been to before.

* * *

"See you guys later!" She called.

Velvet raised a hand high above her in farewell, the summer breeze playing with her long hair as she and Laphi set off.

Leaves crackled under their boots as they made their way forwards, a brilliant shine in their eyes.

Behind them, Arthur, Celica, and the baby all waved back, grinning happily as they stood in front of the nostalgic home.

"Alright!" Laphi's voice was determined and rife with enthusiasm. "Let's go, Velvet!" He urged as he trotted of quickly, hefting the heavy pack on his back and adjusting the crinkled map in his hands.

Velvet chuckled warmly as she ruffled her brother's hair.

High in the sky, the afternoon sun shone brightly and warmly as they left the village.

The vibrant, peaceful hometown.

* * *

"Laphi!" Velvet's terrified scream echoed over the raging waves.

"Aaahhh!" Laphi shouted as he dangled in the air, stray bits of cargo flying all around him as the ship threatened to capsize in the storm.

Velvet's left hand clutched the moist, slippery mast with a death grip, her right clinging onto her brother's without fail.

All around them the rain continued to pour. Distant thunder boomed over the roaring of the waves.

All Velvet could think of was to hold on with her left hand, and to not let go of the ledge.

To keep her beloved brother from falling into the abyss.

* * *

Their boots fell softly into the snow, crunching gently with each step.

Laphi grinned back up at his sister trailing behind him. "Look, Sis!" He pointed forward to the side of the port.

Adjusting her winter coat, Velvet exclaimed in awe as she beheld the vast stalls of seafood Laphi was pointing at.

"That's incredible!" Velvet gasped. "Think of all the dishes I could make with all that!"

Laphi's laughter was bright. "Of course you would go straight for the cooking." He commented lightly.

High up in the sky, the seagulls cried gently as they glided through the snowy air.

In the distance, the various vessels bobbed lightly in their resting spots.

An unburnt, unblemished port.

* * *

Velvet squealed as she beheld the creeping form hovering over her brother's head.

"Look!" Laphi's voice was urgent as he pointed forward. "Treasure!" He exclaimed as he pointed to a treasure chest sitting happily in the corner of the mining tunnels.

"Laphi! Don't move!" Velvet whispered urgently.

Laphi cocked his head at Velvet curiously before gazing up.

"Oh, that's harmless." Laphi smiled happily, cupping the hanging spider in his hands. "They're actually really rare! That was a really nice find, Sis!"

Velvet just huffed through her nose in exasperation.

Boys.

* * *

"Never fear!" Magilou cackled as she stepped out in front of Velvet and Laphi.

"For Mistress Magilou is here!" Bienfu cried, spinning around and casting an arte.

Velvet watched as the two battled the werewolf daemon across the bridge from them. Laphi was carefully tucked soundly against her body, safe from harm.

The howling of the daemon elicited no fear from Velvet as she watched her trusted companion destroy the werewolf without a sweat.

Magilou grinned as she twirled around, facing the two.

"Now be careful my dear travelers!" She sang with a grin. "You never know what might come next!"

Velvet watched as Magilou walked off while humming quietly.

That was so like her.

* * *

The apple was sweet and tart as Velvet crunched into it with a blissful sigh.

"Hey Velvet?" Laphi piped up as he bit into his own apple. "Thanks for coming with me."

The waters bubbled gently against the stone pier they sat on. A gentle breeze blew through the port, gently disturbing the sleeping wooden giants floating easily beside them.

In the horizon, a ship approached port, white sails framed by white clouds.

The sky above was a brilliant, peaceful shade of blue.

"Silly." Velvet laughed as she bit into her apple once more. "That's just what good older sisters do."

Laphi laughed.

"And friends, too." Velvet added softly.

* * *

"Velvet, that's not how you're supposed to hold it!" Laphi scolded as he placed a palm underneath the compass.

Velvet blinked. "Oh…!" She breathed.

The overhead sheets of canvas sang as they fluttered together in the breeze.

"Heh." Behind them, Aifread and Eizen exchanged grins as they observed Laphi give Velvet a thorough lecture on how compasses are supposed to work.

Up at the helm, Benwick fiddled with the Sylphjays in his hair.

The familiar sound of waves meeting the Van Eltia's hull hummed in the background as she moved forwards.

Onwards, towards the future, charting her own course.

* * *

Crickets chirped in the night.

A soft, chilly breeze blew, rustling the grass surrounding Velvet as she smiled softly down at Laphi curled up on her lap.

Quietly, so as not to wake him, she reached over to the side and pulled out a soft blanket, tucking him gently in.

Ever so softly, Velvet massaged Laphi's hair, straightening out the messy bangs.

The crackling of the merry warm campfire continued in the silence.

Yet somehow, something felt missing.

* * *

The tavern was warm, loud, and homely.

Velvet shook her head in exasperation as she looked to her side, gently chewing her food.

Laphi dug into the Mabo Curry ravenously, chunks of curry flying everywhere as he practically inhaled the dish.

Across the bar from them, Tabatha smiled knowingly.

Behind them, Rokurou and Shigure raised their own dishes of sake in comradery. They grinned, chatting amicably about fights of the past.

Both Stormhowl and Stormquell rested quietly on the brick wall behind them.

A debt that had been paid.

* * *

Velvet and Laphi gasped in exhaustion as they stumbled up the next flight of stairs only to groan simultaneously as they discovered another set of stairs just as high.

"I can't… I can't!" Laphi moaned as he wiped the sweat from his brow.

Velvet groaned in sympathy. "I didn't know when they said this place was tall… that they would mean  _this_ tall!"

Amazingly, Eleanor came by wearing  _winter clothing_  of all things. And she wasn't even sweating!

Eleanor's face was scrunched in concern. "Oh, are you two alright?" She asked worriedly. "Can I help in any way?"

Far up the stairs of the Empyrean Throne above them, two exorcist praetor consuls strode upwards with matching hair and attire.

People whom Velvet didn't want to think about.

* * *

Birds chirped while trees rustled underneath the bright summer day.

"No, this way leads to Port Zekson!" Velvet yelled determinedly. "I'm sure we came through here!"

"But the map says that we need to take the Danann Highway on that side, back there!" He pointed backwards.

"Ugh!" Velvet groaned. "I'm telling you, Laphi. I've been here before! I know where I'm going!"

"No way you've been here before!" Laphi dismissed instantly.

Velvet blinked.

"…Alright, fine. I guess you're right." She conceded.

* * *

"Come on, Sis!" Laphi cried as he tugged on Velvet's sleeve, dragging her through the crowds and towards the port. "They're leaving soon!"

"I know, I know!" Velvet agreed as she ran. "I just need to pick up some more gels!"

"Argh! Fine!" Laphi grumbled. "Come on!"

The market, however, was surprisingly empty by the time they arrived.

Only one shopkeeper was there, leaning against the stone wall behind the market in an obscure corner. A soft, bittersweet smile on his face as he watched them approach.

A man who she knew didn't belong.

In this world.

Leo smiled sadly. "Heya, Velvet."

* * *

"Sis…?" Innominat muttered quietly as he tugged on her hand.

Velvet Crowe glanced down quietly at the likeliness of her brother with a soft expression. "…Tell you what, Laphi."

She smiled warmly. "Why don't you go get the gels?" She suggested, looking over the boy's shoulder and meeting Leo's gaze. "I'll be right over." She promised, not taking her eyes off of Leo's.

"Uh… Alright." Innominat agreed as he walked away hesitantly.

In the background, the docked ships creaked quietly with the softly blowing winds echoing off the surrounding cliffs. Water bubbled softly against the docks. High up in the air, a flock of seagulls cried together.

Velvet made sure the Empyrean was gone before she turned around, walking over to the edge of the docks, and stared out into the boundless waters.

"…What are you doing here, Leo?" She asked lowly into the air.

Leo nodded. It was a reasonable enough question.

"I was invited." He stated simply.

Velvet blinked, turning around. "By who-?"

She gasped.

"Phi?!" She breathed as she took in the familiar form of her beloved friend standing next to Leo on the docks.

"Actually," Leo spoke up, "not quite." He shrugged. "He goes by the name Maotelus, nowadays, back in Desolation."

"Back in…?" Velvet's eyes were wide. "You mean we're in a different world?" She blinked. "How long has it been since…?" She trailed off brokenly, lost.

Laphicet spoke up.

"Velvet."

The soft, loving way in which the malak had uttered her name broke her heart.

"You aren't on Desolation anymore." Laphicet explained tenderly. "You've been dreaming with Innominat this entire time. Leo has been searching for a world to put you two to rest for almost a year."

"A… year?" Velvet gasped in shock.

"How quickly time flies when you're dreaming, huh?" Leo commented lightly. His eyes hardened. "…But even more so when you travel worlds."

"Yes." Laphicet nodded slowly. "Much more time has passed in Desolation than for you two because of the time distortion across worlds."

He hesitated.

"…It's been 20 years or so since you left, Velvet." Laphicet admitted.

Velvet's eyes were wide.

"In all honestly, it could've been much worse, actually." Leo shrugged. "I was expecting a whole millennium to have passed by in Desolation already, considering my luck."

Suddenly, a thought struck the therion. "But wait…" Velvet's brow furrowed. "If we're on a different world, how are you talking to us, Phi?" She asked in befuddlement.

"You mean Maotelus." Leo reminded.

Velvet's narrowed gaze snapped to him, demanding an explanation.

Leo shifted on his feet, hefting the rifle on his shoulder habitually. "Phi told me the whole story just now." He explained. "Once we'd left the world, the four Elemental Empyreans showed up, and explained to the group that without a fifth Empyrean in the works, their powers would end up annihilating one another, reducing the whole world to ash." He stuck a thumb at Laphicet. "He volunteered."

Laphicet nodded quietly, meeting Velvet's shocked gaze. "I did what you wished, Velvet." He assured softly. "I did what I could to help those flawed humans you helped to save."

"That's…" Velvet breathed softly in awe. "…That's incredible, Phi."

Despite everything, the complement made the young Empyrean beam brightly.

"Thanks, Velvet." He returned.

"So… then your being here is because you're an Empyrean now?" Velvet summarized slowly.

Laphicet nodded, turning to Leo. "In the end, it turns out all the training that Leo gave me wasn't all for nothing." He explained. "Once I had become a full-fledged Empyrean, I was able to use the knowledge he had told me about radiation and the nature of the worlds to sense your guys' presence as you travelled."

Leo grinned, patting the Empyrean lightly on the head. "Basically, the kid's been spying on us this whole time." He summarized happily.

"L-Leo!" Phi rolled his eyes. "Don't say it like  _that_!"

"Haha, fine, Mr. God." Leo instantly mock-bowed.

"Still," the man straightened seriously, "gotta say, Phi. I can't say enough how proud of you I am."

"No, it was all thanks to you guys." Laphicet assured. "Really."

Velvet spoke up. "What changed?" She asked pointedly. "Why contact me now, Phi? After all this time?"

Leo exchanged a hesitant glance with Laphicet.

Velvet's eyes narrowed.

"Velvet…" Laphicet began hesitantly. "The world that Leo has found is completely devoid of life."

She blinked.

Leo nodded. "Out there, in the real world that we're in, there's nothing. A whole world on the edge of heat death. Not a single living thing exists." He pointed a thumb at the kid. "We can take a god's word on that point."

"I'm sure." Laphicet confirmed.

"I've had a lot of time to develop my powers over the years thanks to Leo's advice." He smiled softly. "It wasn't all for nothing after all. In the end, I can finally use all the knowledge we gained in those days, after all these years."

He curled his fists, meeting Velvet's eyes. "Finally, I can right the wrongs of the past." He murmured.

Understanding dawned on Velvet's expression.

"You want me to abandon Innominat." She realized with absolute certainty.

Both Leo and Laphicet nodded solemnly in tandem.

Leo explained, "We'd leave Innominat to be confined in this universe forever, where he'd have no choice but to fall back asleep once again." He turned to the Empyrean standing by his side.

"Phi's used his powers from Innominat to extend his resonance to me by making Hawk his sublord, giving me permanent resonance." He abruptly revealed. "That means I'd be able to see you and Hawk even after we'd leave Innominat's domain, so we could travel together-"

"No."

Leo blinked. "Velve-!" He began hotly.

"I won't hear it." Velvet stated firmly, turning her back to the two of them.

Quietly, she raised her left, bandaged hand, staring at it with a set jaw. "I told you before. There is no redemption for me."

"Velvet…" Laphicet murmured softly.

The woman shook her head slowly. "No, Phi. I will not leave." She put a single hand on her hip, staring out into the dreamy horizon. "This is a fitting end for the Lord of Calamity." She stated softly out into the wind. "That's all."

"I disagree."

Velvet blinked in surprise, whipping around at the jarringly familiar voice. What she saw astonished her.

Standing alongside Leo and Laphicet on the docks were the forms of her group. Her friends. The people she'd never gotten a chance to say goodbye to.

But they were different.

Eleanor Hume met Velvet's gaze solidly. Her white and blue clothing was strangely marked, clearly demarcating her as an important individual. Her face was aged and weathered, yet still retained her recognizable features including her fierce, piercing eyes.

"You've succeeded, Velvet. Just like you told me you wanted." Eleanor spoke, clutching a fist to her chest. "You've left this world with hope. Hope for survival. Hope for happiness. Hope for a future. A hope that it would've never had under the cold, cruel reign of Innominat and Artorius."

She shook her head. "I'll be  _damned_  if I'm to watch you refuse to accept the good deeds you've done for this world!"

"But-!" Velvet stammered haphazardly.

Eleanor sharply raised a hand to stop her. "I won't hear it!" She snipped with a commandingly bite to her voice.

She met her old enemy's gaze firmly. "You deserve better than this! You deserve better than to stew in some obscure corner of the worlds with nobody but that  _murderous imitation_  of your brother to keep you company!"

"There!" She yelled, turning around hurriedly. "I've said my piece!"

Rokurou chuckled lightly. He hadn't changed much, save for the addition of Shigure's Stormhowl sheathed on his back. "You know," He pointed out, "they call her Shepherd Eleanor now."

Velvet's eyes were wide. "Shepherd… Eleanor?" The worlds tasted completely wrong in her mouth.

"Yeah." Rokurou confirmed with a nod. "She's doing what Artorius  _should've_ done. Helping the people." The daemon shrugged. "Now, I'm not really someone you should really turn to for moral quandaries, but for what it's worth, I suggest you listen to the woman the world calls the true savior."

"…I don't understand." Velvet shook her head in disbelief. "How are you all…?"

"It's Maotelus's power."

Velvet turned to take in Eizen's familiar appearance. The reaper habitually hooked his thumbs behind his belt and explained, "The Empyrean's had a lot of time to figure out his latent abilities. Right now, he's projecting our beings through the worlds, so we can communicate with you."

Rokurou shrugged. "The kid's been a hell of a god, I'll say that much." He grinned, patting the kid on the head. "Although he'll always be good 'ol Laphicet in my eyes!"

Despite himself, Laphicet pouted back up at the daemon. "Sheesh." He muttered. "Sometimes I wonder what it'll take to make you all stop treating me like a little kid!"

Magilou, still the same as ever thanks to her oath, chuckled lightly and eased her hands behind her neck. She grinned wryly at the therion. "Hey, don't look at me for some sort of sappy dribble." She shrugged helplessly. "The kiddo just dragged me in here with the rest of the lot. Honestly, I think he's letting the power go to his head just a little bit."

Eleanor glared sourly at the infuriating witch. "You do realize this will be the  _very last time_ we ever see Velvet again, right?" She pointed out unhappily.

"Feh." Magilou sighed dramatically. " _Fine_."

She put a hand on her hip and gave the therion a genuine smile. "Here's a free piece of advice." Her smile morphed into a smirk. "Just move on!" She urged lightly. "I've done it plenty of times! It's easy once you get the hang of it."

Eleanor just sighed. "I guess that's good enough." She muttered sourly.

Rokurou and Eizen laughed.

"Some things never change, even after two decades, I suppose." Leo murmured fondly as he stepped quietly over to Velvet's side.

Eizen stepped forward seriously.

"Velvet." Eizen spoke. "Naturally, I have no right to dictate what you do at all." He shrugged. "But I can give you advice. The same advice I gave Leo all those years ago." His eyes narrowed.

"Wake up." He urged. "Outside, your ship's wheel awaits. Take it, and let the creed of Aifread's Pirates live on through you wherever you go."

Rokurou nodded, stepping forward alongside his rival. "You really shouldn't stay here." He urged. "A new life awaits you outside in the real world, Velvet. You've gone through way too damn much trial to not enjoy yourself for a change!" He grinned. "Come on! Doesn't that sound nice?"

Velvet shook her head. "But…!" She began.

Magilou cut her off. "Geez!" She groaned, stepping forward. "How long does it take for someone to get through that thick skull of yours?!" She swatted at the therion in frustration. "For crying out loud, stop making things so complicated and just try living without a purpose for a bit!" She pointed an index finger to her temple with a grin. "It's quite pleasant, really."

Eleanor made her way to stand next to the rest of her former group. "Velvet." She intoned quietly. "The world isn't black and white." She shook her head. "You aren't entirely evil, and you aren't entirely good."

She met the woman's eyes.

"That's what makes you as human as it gets." She assured the woman. "Which is why…"

"…as Shepherd Eleanor Hume, I beg for you, Velvet Crowe, Lord of Calamity, to  _live_."

Laphicet made his way in front of the group, his eyes filled with passion. "Velvet." He pleaded. "I've given you your wings. All you have to do is decide to fly." He shook his head. "We aren't forcing you. You have to make the decision on your own. This is your chance to find a new life… and to spread your wings."

"But…"

Quietly, the malak held Velvet's hands in his own. "If it makes any difference," Laphicet intoned, "I have a request for you."

Velvet already knew what the Empyrean was going to say.

"Die." Laphicet told her earnestly. "But only after eating. Living. Doing everything you want to in life. This is my last,  _and only_ , selfish request for you." He mumbled.

Velvet exhaled softly. "Phi…" She whispered tenderly.

"You don't deserve this Velvet." The boy assured. "Please. Live."

Leo clapped a hand on Velvet's shoulder, giving her a soft grin. "Hey, I've followed you around for enough, right?" He shrugged. "Don't you think maybe it's time for you to follow  _me_  around for a bit? Help me find my own home?"

He smiled lopsidedly. "Who knows? Maybe you'll find one for yourself. There are infinite possibilities out there, after all."

"But… Laphi…" Velvet breathed softly, reaching into her pack and pulling out the annotated map. Full of places in Desolation to explore. She could already see what would happen should she say no.

She and Laphi would continue to travel, and perhaps visit Meirchio. Sit under the aurora together. Talk about their own adventures and laugh. And then they'd return to Aball and return to Arthur and Celica and the baby. They'd hunt prickleboar together, one big, happy family.

Together, in happiness.

"This isn't real." Leo reminded lowly as he reached into his jacket.

A flash of amber blinked in Velvet's vision as she recognized the broken thing in the man's hand.

"Remember what I told you." Leo urged.

Slowly, quietly, Velvet gathered the broken shards of Laphi's amber comb in her palm.

"Velvet? Are you ready to go? The ship's leaving now."

Everyone turned around to find Innominat walking up hesitantly to the rest of them. His eyes darted nervously between the strangers surrounding his sister.

Leo turned back to Velvet, whom was still staring at the broken shards of comb in her hand. "It's now… or never, Velvet." Leo breathed.

He stepped back. Everyone else stepped back as well.

The message was clear.

Does she stay? Or leave? Does she sleep? Or does she wake?

What does she choose? What will she regret choosing?

"Velvet?" Innominat's voice was anxious.

Velvet stared at what Leo had given her. The comb was destroyed; broken by Innominat's sword in an attempt to pierce her own heart. It was irreversible.

Permanent.

What was done was done. There was no going back.

Laphicet Crowe was dead.

Her brother was…

The wind whistled as it blew through the distant cliffs enveloping the port.

Suddenly, Velvet realized where she was.

She was in Port Cadnix. The same port where Phi had given her Laphi's comb that night after Innominat…

Her gaze shifted to Phi, seeing the heart-wrenchingly hopeful expression on his face. She abruptly realized that if she chose to stay here…

She chose to spit on everything they'd done in their travels. And that was one thing she didn't want to happen.

And just like that, the Lord of Calamity had made up her mind.

Velvet sighed, holding the comb shards in her hand. "I'm… sorry, Laphi." She murmured softly. She looked away, off into the horizon, her mind reliving a different time and a different dream. "It looks like I'll be leaving you once more." She breathed.

"V-Velvet?!"

He sounded so lost and alone. It tore at her heart.

"But… Why?" Innominat pleaded.

She turned around and kneeled down, hugging her brother fiercely, the chains on her outfit clinking loudly in the silence. "Because nothing lasts forever, Laphi." She held him tightly against her with all her love. "…That's what makes them special."

She held the sobbing, confused boy out at arm's length. "I promise you." She breathed. "I will never,  _ever_ forget the time we had together, Laphi."

The dream cracked.

Velvet's eyes were hard. "…It's time to say goodbye." She said softly.

"N-no… No! V… Vel… VELVEEEET!" Laphi howled as he began to fade, truly alone.

Velvet looked on sadly as the dream began to collapse around them, the image of her brother fading into nothing.

"I'm sorry." She breathed.

The shards of a broken comb vanished completely from her grasp. Her gaze rose to all of her friends, standing behind Laphi in the swirling vista of the collapsing dreamscape.

The moment had come.

She gave them a single, genuine smile.

"Thank you." She whispered. "All of you. For everything."

There were no words that could express her gratefulness at having them by her side in her darkest moments.

Her friends simply nodded wordlessly in return.

Laphicet smiled softly as he stepped forwards. Behind him, the rest of the group began to fade, disappearing along with the rest of the dream.

"Go." Laphicet urged softly. "Live."

Velvet's smile was soft as she patted the malak lovingly on the head. True love, not the pale imitation she had expressed with Innominat.

"I'll try." She promised. "For your sake."

She smiled softly. "Sorry for being such a terrible failure of a human being." She breathed.

Laphicet's smile was wide. "It's okay." He murmured genuinely.

"I forgive you."

With that, the image of the malak vanished, melting along with the rest of the surroundings as the dream collapsed.

With that, Velvet stood and turned around. She walked away, towards Leo standing at the edge of the docks. She walked away from her old life. From her sins. She walked forward, with the hope bestowed upon her by her friends.

She knew she would never see them again.

She would go. She would live. She accepted the possibility of moving on… the possibility of redemption. The promise of a home, somewhere out there among the stars.

Because she was alive.

And all that was left was to follow her creed.

Her hand clasped with Leo's.

The man nodded seriously, meeting the woman's eyes.

He pulled…

* * *

…Velvet screamed as she was wrenched out of Innominat's embrace and into the conscious world. Into reality.

Into the future.

As her mind whirled with the sensation of being wrenched out of a year-long sleep, an obscure thing that Eizen once said came to mind.

The most human trait of all… was to face one's innermost contradictions. And to live on, acknowledging them. Making the most out of one's existence.

She would do her best to live by that rule.

For the sake of her friends.

Suddenly, the world tilted alarmingly as she became aware of her surroundings.

"Leo!" She gasped as she pitched forward on weak legs.

The man was there in an instant, steadying her and wrapping his coat around her naked form.

"Easy there, sleepyhead. We've gotta go, now." He urged as he pulled her away from the raging furnace that Velvet just now registered as Innominat's power exploding out of control.

The seal had been broken. Innominat's insatiable hunger was once more threatening all of creation.

Tearing winds howled, whipping Velvet's hair around as she stumbled forward, following Leo as he dragged her away from the insane, screaming god.

"Hawk!" Leo roared over the winds.

Promptly, the familiar malak appeared and howled, forming a transparent barrier around the three of them and quickly cutting off the howling winds.

Velvet gasped as she steadied herself, glancing around the outside wide-eyed as Innominat's power continued to pour outwards and rage across the world.

A whole new world.

BANG!

Both human and therion recoiled as the ground beneath them trembled in a fit of rage. They were blinded by a brilliant flare of light as magnificent eruptions of lava and magma burst forth from the dirt. Off the cliff where Innominat was situated, the entire ocean boiled at an unbelievable rate, forming a massive pillar of steam reaching up into the heavens. High up in the sky, exploding supernovas occurred as the remaining stars in the universe all detonated at once.

The night, if only temporary, lit up in a brilliant vista, framing the two otherworldly travelers with vibrant hues.

"I'll need a few moments to ready the device. Hold tight." Leo warned as he concentrated, playing with the augmented settings in his device.

"What's going to happen to this world?" Velvet asked as the distant explosions continued, watching in sheer awe the utter chaos occurring around them.

Leo grunted, looking around anxiously. "Well," he muttered, "judging from what's going on right now I'd say it's safe to assume that Innominat will consume all matter in the entire universe."

"I believe it." Velvet breathed as she watched the stars up above. "And once there's nothing left to eat, he'll just fall back asleep?"

Leo nodded.

He chuckled softly. "Honestly. It's sort of poetic. This entire world will become the equivalent of Titania on a universal scale." He turned his gaze onto the flaming ball of uncontrollable mana at the edge of the cliff. His eyes were hard. "Innominat will become reduced to a mere source of energy to power the therions and Phi, as well as provide us with the means of world travel."

He huffed. "A reversal of the highest order. The servants imprisoning the master."

Velvet's eyes were hard. Her mouth was clenched in a firm line as she gazed at the screaming form of her brother as he suffered.

Leo met her eyes meaningfully.

"Velvet." He prompted seriously. "Are you sure this is what you want?" He asked.

The explosions continued to send tremors through the ground. The therion was quiet as she watched the image of her brother suffer, his screams renting the very air. She didn't have an answer for him.

But she did have something to say.

"…Thank you, Leo." She mumbled softly, meeting the man's eyes. "For waking me."

Leo grinned back lightly. "Now then, don't get any ideas about me doing this out of the kindness of my heart." He scoffed dramatically. "I just didn't want to get lonely. Hawk can't talk back to me, you know."

He shrugged. "It was a completely selfish choice."

Velvet couldn't help but roll her eyes. "Right." She drawled, meeting the man's gaze. "Well, if that's the case, I'll be coming along for a completely selfish choice as well."

"Oh?" Leo's grin widened. "And what might that be?"

Velvet turned her gaze away from the likeliness of her brother and up towards the exploding stars far above.

"…Flight." She breathed.

She was profoundly influenced by the very notion. A possible future. A chance at redemption. A hint of finding a place to belong.

She'd be flying. For no other reason.

They stood in contemplative silence as the world collapsed around them.

Leo abruptly shifted, seeing something Velvet couldn't see as he adjusted the settings of his mental device. He met her eyes.

"…Let's go, Velvet." He urged. "Let's wander."

Velvet nodded quietly.

Leo took a moment to take a last look over the decaying horizon engulfed in chaos. This world was dead.

There was no point in staying.

And with that thought in mind, Leo nodded his head.

BEEP!

"Notice. Initializing. Notification code: 7029."

A humming filled the very fabric of his being as the device began the familiar routine of transporting the man to a different world. He had long ago lost track of how many times he'd had to listen to this same whining pitch as it grew louder and louder in his ears.

He met his friend's eyes across from him as the whining peaked. His vision abruptly blanked out as the machine overrode his sensory processes in favor of easing the transition.

Just another step in an endless path.

They would go, and they would wander. They would explore. They would adventure. The worlds were an endless sea of possibilities. It was time to man the wheels of their ships.

Quietly, Velvet spoke softly as the whining peaked. "Laphi… Phi… Everyone." She breathed.

"Goodbye." She whispered once more with haunting finality.

A sudden blinding flash of light briefly joined the rest of the explosions tearing up the very foundations of the world. For a brief second, it was as if the sun had returned to full strength, announcing its presence to the vast wastelands of an empty world.

And then just like that, the flash vanished.

And just like that, the Wanderers of Worlds continued their ceaseless journey together, foolishly searching for the place they could call home.

Just one of those days.

* * *

Silence filled the universe for a single heartbeat.

BANG!

And then in an instant, the entire world was engulfed in a massive explosion as the God's power detonated all at once. The entire universe became a cacophony of rage and anger.

And then, all of a sudden, the light was snuffed out like a candle.

The universe had died.

All was dark.

There was only one thing in this universe left.

A likeliness of a naked boy, hunched in a ball, trembling.

Utterly mad and alone, with nobody there to hold him.

He would stay there, eternally alive, yet eternally hungry, in a whole universe devoid of creation.

A solitary prison fit for a god.

Such was his punishment.

**End of Part 10 – To the Endless World.**

* * *

**Future.**

Waves crashed into the metal hull of the ship in the dead of night.

A light drizzle was falling, pattering on the hard, emotionless steel that made up the ship's ragged deck. A thrum of thunder boomed in the distant ocean; a foreboding sign of a storm soon to come. The grinding steam engine of the vessel was an ever-present constant, accompanying the pitter-patter of the rain and the chorus of the waves below.

A single cloaked figure stood at the bow of the angular ship facing outward into the murky horizon, indifferent to the winds and the rain.

Velvet Crowe's eyes were hard and contemplative as she surveyed the world. Her forearms were perched on the railing of the ship's bow, supporting her body as she leaned forward into the breeze. Her thoughts were of a different place and of a different time.

Another crash of thunder boomed in the distant waters.

"Nice night, wouldn't you say?"

Velvet's only visible reaction to Leo's words was a slight incline of her lips. "As far as this world has been, actually, yes." She remarked as her fellow wanderer propped himself lightly onto the railing next to her.

Leo glanced briefly over his shoulder before letting out a low whistle. "Come on out, Hawk. Coast is clear." He urged.

With a familiar flash of green, their ever-present companion appeared on the railings, letting out a massive whine as he stretched out his legs.

Velvet raised an eyebrow. "Poor guy. This is the first time we've had away from prying eyes in this world, isn't it?"

"Bah, he's had worse." Leo shrugged uncaringly.

Hawk took the opportunity to lift his hind leg in his particular direction.

"GAH!" Leo yelped, leaping backwards in order to dodge his malak's disgusting rebuttal. "Damn mutt! I'm wet enough as it is!" He exclaimed.

Velvet laughed, shaking her head in exasperation. "You're idiots. Both of you."

"I'll have you know I resent that." Leo returned easily, settling himself back next to the railing beside her. Hawk took the opportunity to nestle himself on the crook of Leo's shoulder inside of his warm cloak, hiding from the rain.

The three of them stayed in that position, staring out silently into the distance as the storm approached. The constant churning of the huge ship's engine continued in the quiet.

"…2 years."

Velvet's words were soft, but Leo heard them all the same.

"Yeah." He nodded softly in empathy. "It gets crazy, doesn't it? How time can go by so fast and yet so slow at the same time."

She shifted on her feet, the chains on her outfit clinking lightly underneath her cloak. "I don't think I'll ever get used to it." She admitted.

Leo hummed wordlessly in response. He knew far too well what she was feeling. He'd gone through all of it himself long ago.

"Still," he offered, "it's funny how some things can stay the same despite it all."

Velvet instantly caught on to his meaning with a laugh. "Right." She glanced around at their surroundings. A darkened sky. A ship moving forward through the ocean. Adventure. Freedom. "This is just like the Van Eltia."

Her companion let out a grunt, idly stretching out his sore limbs as he responded. "It's missing a few cuckoo sailors here and there though." He commented.

Velvet's smile was soft and nostalgic at the reminder.

"…What do you think Eizen would say to us, if he saw us right here and now?" She asked abruptly.

Leo blinked in surprise. He gave the question some serious thought.

After a pause, his voice was hesitant. "…Is it bad that I'm not entirely sure of the answer?" He asked quietly into the rain.

Velvet shook her head soberly. "No." She opined. "I can't remember everything either."

"…Well," Leo muttered, "that's just how it goes, I suppose."

In his nest inside Leo's cloak, Hawk let out a reprimanding yip.

Velvet let out a huff.

"Hawk's right. I thought we agreed  _not_ to dwell on the past." She pointed out.

"Well, I can't help it." Leo drawled sarcastically. "After all, not a day goes by when I don't think of how Magilou never paid me back for that bet she lost!" He slammed his fist onto the metal railing with mock anger.

She rolled her eyes in response. "I do hope you realize that you're preaching to the choir."

Leo let out a hmph. "Man, she was like the total opposite of Rokurou." He complained. "I don't think she ever paid  _anyone_ back."

"We were  _all_ pretty much opposites, back then." Velvet pointed out drolly.

Leo gave her a fanged smirk. "Well, except you and Eleanor, that is. According to what Phi said back then, you two were almost identical." He drawled.

Velvet's eye twitched. "…Even after two years," she muttered sourly, "that still rubs me the wrong way."

"Ah, You and your grudges." Leo mock sighed. "For what would the vengeful Lord of Calamity be without her thirst for vengeance!" He exclaimed.

"If we want to talk vengeance," she shot back, "just wait until you need me to save your butt from whatever contrived situation you get yourself into next."

"Oh, that's easy." Leo waved a hand. "I'll just have Hawk blow 'em up all sky-high." He grinned. "Problem solved!"

Velvet gave him a look. "…You know," she commented wryly, "I'm  _really_ starting to understand why your violent ass fit in with all of us back then."

Leo laughed. "Pot calling the kettle black, don't you think?"

"Heh." She shrugged easily. "Well, I won't deny it..."

The two of them shared a nostalgic grin.

BOOM!

The three of them barely flinched as an earth-shattering explosion occurred behind them. Velvet took the moment to glance idly over her shoulder and examine the residual sparks on the lightning rod atop the ship's bridge behind them.

She let out a sigh.

"Sometimes, I think what Laphi would say if he were with us." Velvet admitted softly, her words deafeningly loud in the aftermath of the lightning strike. In her fist, she clutched the two broken comb fragments.

Still shackled by her past.

Leo's eyes were sober as watched his friend silently leaning back on the railing, staring up into the cloudy heavens.

He didn't say anything.

It had been  _her_  choice to leave Innominat all those years ago. And it would be up to her alone to make peace with that fact.

Instead, Leo just turned back around and stared out once more into the horizon, the distant lightning playing tricks with his eyes. He'd been correct, in more ways than one, in how things always stayed the same.

2 years later after she'd abandoned her false brother in his worldly prison, here Velvet Crowe was still, travelling the  _worlds_.

For _Laphi_.

All around them, the rain began to pour.

Leo shook his head, turning around and putting a hand on the distraught Velvet's shoulder. "Hey." He prompted tenderly, causing her to make eye contact. He tapped his temple. "Forgot to mention. The device charged a few hours ago."

"Huh." Velvet mumbled, shaking her head and forcing her demons to back off for the time being. "I guess it's time to go?" She asked.

"You know it." Leo affirmed.

Hawk let out a yip and leapt down from his master's shoulder, landing on the sodden metal deck with a huff in preparation for the jump. He glanced up expectantly at Leo.

Velvet shifted on her feet, equally readying herself for the familiar process of transporting to a different world. Absently, her right hand tucked the shards of the amber comb away in her jacket.

Always with her.

The blistering wind howled alongside the torrential rainfall all around them, enveloping them in a fury of nature.

Just one of those days.

…

Suddenly, Leo froze up, his eyes widening in pure shock. "Wh-What?!" He gasped.

Velvet opened her mouth to ask what was wrong when she heard it too, in her mind. Her jaw dropped.

A voice she'd never thought she'd hear again in her life rang as clear as day in her mind.

" _V… Vel… Velvet…! Leo…! P… Please!"_

Phi.

His voice.

…In distress.

Instantly, Velvet pushed through her shock and yelled out loud, praying that the otherworldly Empyrean could hear her words. "PHI!" She yelled out into the howling winds. "PHI! What's wrong?!" She beseeched.

" _The… Ma… Malevolence…!"_

The heart-wrenchingly familiar voice tapered out alarmingly.

Both Leo and Velvet's eyes widened in horror. Leo gasped, instantly registering the implications. "You don't mean to say-?!"

"He's being overrun by malevolence!?" Velvet exclaimed in horror. "That can't be! Phi?!" She cried.

"…"

The only sounds remaining in the world were of rain and wind and of metal machinery.

Hawk whined urgently in distress.

"Come on, Phi!" Leo mumbled as his eyes de-focused. "Come on, kid! You have to have given us something!"

Velvet, recognizing Leo's state of checking the settings on his mental device, glanced around in utter frustration at her futility.

Phi was suffering,  _worlds_  away from her! And she could do  _nothing_  to help!

With a roar, her therion claw burst out from her left arm and violently smashed into the metal deck with an ear-grating squeal. Heaving with exhaustion, Velvet wrenched her left arm out of the deck from the cavity she'd made, snarling in frustration.

Useless!

At her side, Hawk nudged her urgently, clearly pleading her to stay calm. Leo barely spared her a glance, furiously going through the augmented reality menus in his head.

With a deep breath, Velvet got a hold of her anger and forced herself to dispel her claw. She needed to get a hold of herself. That was how she got things done.

"Velvet." She whirled around and faced Leo urgently, meeting the man's eyes. "We have a way to save him."

Velvet took an anxious step forward. "You mean to say-?!" She yelled over the rain.

Leo held up a hand to stop her question. "Phi gave us one last gift before he fell silent." He tapped his temple. "His radiation frequency." He explained concisely. "He gave me the whole thing."

Understanding dawned on Velvet's expression. "That's right! He's an Empyrean now, isn't he?!"

"Right." Leo nodded. "And since we now know the exact numbers…"

"…We can deduce which relative universal coordinates his radiation is coming from." Velvet finished in awe.

"Exactly." Leo confirmed shortly.

An overwhelming wave of mixed emotions instantly flowed through her. All the time that had passed for her. All the centuries that must've passed while she'd been gone. The old faces that awaited her, and the old faces that didn't.

…Yet, none of it mattered.

Phi needed their help. He had given them the means to go and save him.

That was all that mattered.

She and Leo exchanged a silent nod, wordless in their conviction. Nothing more needed to be said. There was only one path left for the two wanderers.

It was time to go back.

The waves continued to beat unceasingly against the hull as the ship continued unceasingly forward. Onwards, into the storm.


	64. Afterword

**Afterword.**

The Wanderer of Worlds:

The Blade of Emotion tempered by Reason

* * *

Velvet and Leo will return to Desolation!

Or should I say…  **Glenwood.**

The sequel's name will be  **The Wolf in Sheep's Clothing**. The fandom will be a crossover between Tales of Berseria and Tales of Zestiria.

You'll be happy to know that the sequel has been completely outlined, much in the same fashion as I outlined this story. All that is left to draft the sequel and then publish it in the same manner as the Wanderer of Worlds. However, this time the updates won't be nearly as regular, sorry! Expect maybe one chapter a month, on average.

I digress.

The sequel will focus on Velvet Crowe rather than Leonex Davidson, and on her impact on the original storyline of Zestiria. Her character has many flaws left to develop, and I look forward to colliding her darkness with the blinding optimism of the many themes of Tales of Zestiria.

To be honest, I've been very,  _very_ much looking forward to it.

If you've stuck with me through to the end… Thanks! Let me know how I did! I've been reading fanfiction for 3-4 years now, but this is my first time opening the word doc and writing on that blank page. How was it for a first fic? I'd appreciate any criticism you could throw my way. (No really. Feel free to hate; if you think my work warrants it, I welcome it in the interest of self-improvement.)

In the end, the planning/development of this fic took up 6 separate word documents and 7 different 35" white boards, while the actual word document of Draft 1 contained over 807 pages and over 292,000 words. Overall, over 450,000 words relevant to the development of this fic were typed, including outlines, summaries, and character notes.

Work began on the first draft of the fic in early May of 2018 and finished in late August of 2018. The first few chapters were published soon after.

Special thanks to users NoNameAvailableBis and Cyberlink for the reviews! Each and every review you all sent me made my day! NoNameAvailableBis, kaiser_dracon, Triheart156 and all other guests, thanks for the kudos as well!

What a ride. Thank  _all_  of you for reading, so much. I'll see you all soon!

Oh, and yeah! Merry Christmas.

\- CloudFry, December 24th, 2018

* * *

**Bonus Chapter.**

"Aaaah…"

Magilou sighed blissfully, her body easing lower into the bubbling waters. "You know, I'm pretty okay with this." Her comment was accompanied by a set of bubbles as her mouth and nose slipped underwater.

"I'll second that." Eleanor replied happily, settling herself down across from the witch in the hot spring waters. She blinked as she felt something brush up against her body.

"Oh! Enjoying yourself, Hawk?" She asked happily as the malak nuzzled against her, lightly padding in the foaming waters.

Hawk yipped lightly in response, maneuvering himself in front of the woman.

"Hehe, fine!" Eleanor grinned, indulging the malak by reaching forward and engulfing him in a warm hug. "Leo's right. You're totally spoiled." She berated easily, holding the fluffy malak in her embrace.

Across from the exorcist praetor, Velvet laid back on the tiled walls of the hot spring with a sigh. "I think we all could do with a little spoiling after all that work." She mumbled, closing her eyes and relaxing.

"No kidding." Magilou hummed. "I guess they don't call it the Heavenly Steppes for nothing. It feels like we've climbed a million flights of stairs to get here."

Eleanor ran a hand through Hawk's fur, eliciting an almost purr-like response. "But we got here, and now we get to destress!" She let out another sigh, slouching further into the waters. "And it feels…  _really_  nice."

Hawk yipped lazily in agreement, cuddling deeper into Eleanor's embrace.

"Yeah…" Velvet agreed lightly, her eyes still closed. "It's like I can feel my soul just… floating off with the steam."

A flash of white.

* * *

"Aahh… It feels like all my wounds are melting away." Rokurou breathed, idly playing with the water's surface with his eyes closed.

Across the tub from him, Eizen let out a concurring sigh. "I'll say." He remarked, leaning back against the tiled wall. "The water is  _just_ the right temperature. Soothes all the important places!"

"Yip." Leo mumbled, paddling his hands lightly out in front of him.

Rokurou's eyes blinked open. "…Hawk? When did you get over there…?" He asked as he glanced over to where the sound had come from. And then he screamed at a high pitch. "AHHHH!"

Everyone's eyes flew wide open in alarm at Rokurou's screech.

"What heck's wrong with you?!" Eizen grumbled resentfully.

"The hell?!" Laphicet exclaimed, shooting up in the water and looking around wildly. His eyes ran over his own body, Eizen's, Rokurou's, Bienfu's, and…

"Yip?!" Leo exclaimed, suddenly floundering in the shallow water as if he had no idea what to do with his limbs. Hot water splattered everywhere as the grown man panicked, thrashing around on the spot.

Everyone just stared.

Leo looked back helplessly at the lot of them, repeating the word "yip" over and over again.

"…Hawk's in Leo's body." Laphicet observed detachedly as Leo continued to have a panic attack, feeling his own arms, legs and tail. Or lack thereof.

"That, or he's being just a  _little_ bit weirder than normal." Eizen remarked dryly. He blinked, looking over at Laphicet. "And  _you_  seem to be in the kiddo's body." He told Laphicet.

"Oh." Laphicet seemed dumbfounded at the revelation.

With considerable clunky effort, Rokurou managed to make his way over to Leo's side and wrest him under control. "Hawk!" He yelled into Leo's face. "Get a hold of yourself and calm down!"

Leo just whimpered in response, thrashing harder in the water like a caged animal.

"I know it's not comfortable but get a hold of yourself!" Rokurou yelled, leaping forward and wrapping the other man in a bear hug. Leo just struggled even harder in response, squirming and wriggling harder in the waters.

Laphicet and Eizen exchanged a thoroughly disturbed look as two naked grown men continued to wrestle in the waters across from them, their bare wet skin slapping noisily against each other.

"…Just what the devil is going on here?" Eizen asked nobody in particular.

Bienfu's scratchy voice piped up over the grunting of the two men. "This is what makes this place so special, meow!" He exclaimed. "You feel so purrfectly divine that your soul floats away and switches bodies with someone else, meow!"

Everyone, including Leo and Rokurou, immediately froze at the information.

"Wait." Rokurou began, his grip on Leo's neck loosening. "Does that mean that the men are now in…  _OUR BODIES?!_ "

* * *

"…Well. This place certainly wasted no time in getting weird or awkward." Eleanor muttered lowly with a dejected sigh.

"U-uh… I'm not really… comfortable with this." Velvet stuttered, her eyes firmly covered by her hands. "What do we do? I feel like I've got an inner tube strapped to my chest!"

Eleanor turned her head to Magilou. "Eizen, is this another side-effect of your curse?" She asked.

Magilou huffed indignantly. "As if the Reaper's Curse would do something so  _ridiculous_. It's probably just that Katz playing a prank on us."

"I'm amazed that you can stay so calm despite all this, Eizen." Velvet remarked.

Magilou laughed. "This doesn't bother me in the least! My sister and I used to take baths together when we were kids."

"I suppose that… makes sense." Velvet tried.

"…Well, we might as well enjoy ourselves. The water here does feel quite nice." Eleanor grinned, leaning back in the tub.

She abruptly registered a furry mass curled up right in her arms. "Huh? Hawk?"

The poor little malak stared right back up at her with wide, horrified eyes, his jaw hanging slack. His entire body seemed to have frozen up in pure terror.

"Er, sorry." Eleanor realized her mistake. "…Leo." She greeted the pup held at her chest.

With a frantic, terrified howl, Hawk bolted.

Or at least, he would've, had he not been in water. Instead, all the malak managed to do was to smack Eleanor in the face with his hind legs and send himself floundering into the middle of the hot spring. The three women stared at the wolf pup as he thrashed around, struggling in vain to keep his canine head afloat.

"Call it an educated guess, but I don't think Leo's ever had  _this_ experience before." Magilou remarked dryly.

"I-is he alright?" Velvet asked timidly yet worriedly at the chorus of distressed yips and yowls. "I-I can't see what's going on."

"You would if you took your hands off of your eyes." Eleanor pointed out, massaging the bruised chin that Hawk had kicked.

"N-n-no!" Velvet stammered, her face growing redder by the second. "That doesn't seem right!"

"Come on." Eleanor goaded. "I'm not covering mine." She pointed out.

"ROKUROU, YOU LETCH!"

Rokurou's indignant howl echoed throughout the bathhouse and across the divider separating the male and female springs. "Cover your eyes this instant!""

Hawk's paddling grew even more frantic as his limbs began to tire. Mewling yips of terror filled the steamy air.

"Fine, fine, no need to shout, Eleanor!" Eleanor called back. "Though I have to say, your body is… nicely agile. Though… your butt is a bit bulky."

On the other side of the springs, Rokurou's eyes widened in humiliation. "HEY!" He squealed. "YOU KEEP MY HANDS TO YOURSELF!" He shot to his feet.

"E-Eleanor!" Laphicet quickly averted his eyes. "Don't stand up!" He ordered urgently.

Gritting his teeth, Rokurou obeyed the command, splashing back down petulantly into the water.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the bathhouse, things were taking a turn for the worse.

"H-hey!" Velvet shouted as Hawk's yipping pitched.

Her hands slipped off her face in alarm.

Hawk's limbs had finally given out. With an exhausted yelp, the malak sank into the waters like a rock, never to see sunlight ever again.

"Hawk!" Velvet cried frantically, lunging forward and diving down, going to save her malak friend's life. It wasn't even half a second later that a naked Velvet reemerged from the waters, a soaking wet Hawk held tightly in her arms. The rest of the women just stared at the image.

Hawk looked like he honestly would've preferred drowning.

"Right!"

Laphicet's voice rang out across the bathhouse. "Everybody out. This is just too weird to be relaxing!"

"Actually, before we go…" Eleanor piped up. "I've noticed that the Katz's been staring at us for pretty much the entire time.

"…Yeah. That's Bienfu. Smack him for me."

"Got it."

SMACK!

"BIEEEEEEENNNN!"

* * *

"That's too bad." Rokurou hummed in disappointment as the group trotted back through the massive halls of the Heavenly Steppes. "It was such a lovely hot spring. I wish we could've stayed a little longer."

"No, you  _really don't_." Eleanor's face hadn't stopped burning ever since they had left the bathhouse. "Let's  _all_ agree to forget this ever happened."

"…" Eizen exchanged glances with Rokurou. "How do you expect us to do that?" Eizen asked pointedly.

"Yeah." Rokurou deadpanned. "Don't go asking for things we can't actually do."

"I SAID  _FORGET IT!_ "

"Ah! I-if you insist. I-I'll try." Rokurou stammered.

"Uh- Fine…" Eizen agreed, crossing his arms defensively.

Meanwhile, Leo and Hawk walked on stiff legs, each thoroughly traumatized by what they'd just experienced.

"We will speak… of this… to  _no one_ , understand, mutt?!" Leo breathed lowly. "No matter where we go, no matter who we meet,  _what happens in this world stays in this world._ " He hissed.

For once, Hawk replied with a hundred percent genuine yip of agreement. It didn't matter that he couldn't speak.

Leo shuddered again. "How the hell do you even manage having a tail?" He muttered incredulously. "Doesn't it like, get in the way?"

Hawk glared up at the man.

"Hey!" Leo exclaimed defensively. "Just because  _you're_ a freak of nature doesn't mean that everything else should have tails!"

"Oof!"

Having not realized that the group had come to a halt, Leo had abruptly bumped into Eleanor's back.

He froze in terror, his eyes locking onto Eleanor's.

"…ACK!"

Leo instantly jerked backwards as if scalded, dashing away from the woman, trying in vain to unsee the images branded into his vision. "Nope! Nope! Nope!" He yelped. "Gah!"

Eleanor just stared in befuddlement as the man ran away.

She abruptly noticed Hawk giving her a death glare. With a thoroughly offended hmph, Hawk turned tail and strutted away from the woman whom had assaulted him.

"Yeesh." Magilou shrugged helplessly as she observed Eleanor's helpless expression. "So much for a nice team-building exercise! I feel like this has just driven a wedge further between us."

* * *

"I heard you kept your eyes covered the whole time." Velvet remarked, casually walking alongside Laphicet.

Laphicet nodded nervously yet genuinely. "Y-yeah, I did…"

Velvet laughed. "That's so you."

He instantly grew defensive. "What's the problem?! I was just trying to be polite!"

"It's fine. There's no problem." Velvet assured. Her smile grew fanged.

"But I didn't cover mine."

Laphicet froze.

"A-Argh!" He exclaimed, his face boiling red. " _Velvet!_  Why would you even tell me that?!" With a thoroughly embarrassed huff, Laphicet stalked off. Velvet just laughed behind the poor malak's back.

Leo glared sourly at Velvet's amused expression. "You're evil, you know that, right?" He muttered.

She gave him a sly look. "Should I even ask about what happened to  _you_?"

"No." Leo's glare deepened. "You shouldn't."

Velvet shrugged. "I guess no matter how much you travel, there's always new things to experience, huh?"

"…Ain't that the truth." Leo grumbled resentfully.

Velvet just smirked back at him.

Together, the group continued to walk down the steps, having been thoroughly versed in each other's inner secrets. A group of mismatched characters, each unique and different in their own respect. A gathering of selfish individuals formed for convenience yet maintained through friendships.

A mismatched family, in all but blood.

**Fin.**


End file.
